The effects of a therapy dog vs mindfulness vs a student advisor on student anxiety and well-being

ABSTRACT

The psychological well-being of university students is a growing concern, both in the UK and globally. In light of emerging research on the benefits of therapy dogs for student well-being, this study compared the use of therapy dogs to more conventional methods for improving students’ well-being. Ninety-four university students were randomly assigned to one of three 30-minute treatment sessions: dog therapy, mindfulness, or the control group (the university’s standard treatment – a session with a student well-being advisor). All participants completed an anxiety and mood scale, both immediately before and after their allocated session. The results found that whilst all three groups showed a significant decrease in anxiety after their treatment, only the dog therapy and mindfulness groups’ showed anxiety levels that were at or below normal levels. Both groups also reported post-treatment anxiety levels which were significantly lower than those of the controls. Both groups also showed a significant improvement in mood after treatment, whereas the control group did not. The findings of this study therefore suggest that the use of therapy dogs is as effective as mindfulness in reducing students’ anxiety and improving their well-being. The implications and limitations of these findings are discussed further below.

KEYWORDS:

• Therapy dog
• mindfulness
• university student
• stress
• anxiety

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Elizabeth Spruin

Elizabeth Spruin is an Investigative Psychologist and Canine Behaviourist within the Psychology Department at Canterbury Christ Church University. Her main research focuses on the impact that specially trained dogs can have on vulnerable people in the criminal justice system and higher education. In 2017 she founded Justice Support Dogs International, a centre dedicated to researching the impact that dogs can have on vulnerable people.

Tammy Dempster

Tammy Dempster is a research assistant within the Psychology Department at Canterbury Christ Church University. Her interests and experience cover a large number of fields in psychology. She also has experience of conducting quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods research within and across multiple areas of psychology (e.g. social psychology, developmental psychology, cognitive psychology).

Sanjidah Islam

Sanjidah Islam is a PhD student within the Psychology Department at Canterbury Christ Church University. Her PhD focuses on the impact that therapy dogs can have on student well-being and stress.

India Raybould

India Raybould is the student advisor within the Psychology Department at Canterbury Christ Church University.