Up on cloud canine: things look paw-sitive with a dog around. The benefit of canine assisted intervention on the mental health of higher education students

The concept of good mental health is one that is lacking in students enrolled in Higher Education (HE). Experiencing mental health issues is common for many students and as a result of this they struggle during their time in academia. This thesis presents three studies that investigate the benefits of Canine Assisted Intervention (CAI) on the mental health of HE students. Study 1 demonstrates a 10 minute CAI session reduces anxiety and stress levels in a CAI group in comparison to a control group. Study 2 extends this by showing a reduction in depression alongside anxiety and stress and identified no difference in the impact of CAI on a 2 minute, a 5 minute or a 10 minute session when compared to a control group. Study 2 also demonstrated that the form of interaction between canine and human had no impact on CAI, and that a negative correlation was observed between the cuteness of the canine and anxiety levels, and the cuddliness of the canine and stress levels. Finally, study 3 explored, and found no impact of social interaction on the effectiveness of CAI. Instead, it was the simple act of interacting with a canine that was the contributing factor in reducing anxiety, stress, and depression levels, and in increasing general well-being. In addition, attachment style had no impact on the effects of CAI when taking part in a trio, however when interacting with a canine alone, having a proximity seeking style predicted post-depression levels. Study 3 also demonstrated that when experiencing CAI in pairs, an insecure attachment style predicted post cheerfulness and feeling loved, and both insecure and proximity seeking styles predicted post confidence and relaxation.
The findings are important as they demonstrate that the length of CAI (2,5,10 minutes), the level of interaction between canine and human, and social environment have no impact on the effectiveness of CAI. Rather it is simply interacting with a canine that is key to reducing anxiety, stress, and depression levels and in increasing well-being. These results contribute toward CAI being an inexpensive and economical approach for universities hoping to address the mental health issues experienced by students during their time in HE.