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. 2021 Apr 23;18(9):4492.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph18094492.

Exploring Dog-Assisted Interventions in Higher Education: Students' Attitudes and Perceived Effects on Well-Being

Cathrin Rothkopf  1 , Silke Schworm  1
Affiliations

Exploring Dog-Assisted Interventions in Higher Education: Students' Attitudes and Perceived Effects on Well-Being

Cathrin Rothkopf et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Both, in the transition to university and during it, students experience a multitude of different changes. Thus, it is no surprise that many students in higher education report suffering from mental health problems. To address their concerns, animal-assisted interventions (AAIs) have gained more and more attention over the past few years. Nonetheless, AAIs have neither yet been used nor researched at German universities. Two studies were carried out to address this issue. In Study I, 709 university students answered a questionnaire evaluating their attitude towards dogs, AAIs and interest in its use at their home university. In Study II, 27 students participated in a dog-assisted intervention (DAI) in which they were allowed to interact with a qualified dog for 15 min. To gain information about their well-being, blood pressure was measured and the Basler Befindlichkeitsskala had to be answered before and after the intervention. Results showed a positive attitude among German students toward dogs, AAIs, and the use of DAIs at their home university. Although an effect on physical well-being could not be found, results showed that a 15-min DAI can improve students' psychological well-being. Thus, higher education administrators should consider using DAIs as a way to improve student well-being.

Keywords: animal-assisted intervention; at-risk students; attitude; blood pressure; higher education; human–animal interaction; interest; well-being.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Participants’ gender distribution within the sampled faculties.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Differences within the factor “fears” due to field of study.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Design of the intervention room.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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