Publication Date
3-4-2022
Document Type
Article
Organizational Units
Graduate School of Social Work, Institute for Human-Animal Connection
Keywords
Human–canine interactions, Animal-assisted interventions, Stress biomarkers, Molecular biomarkers
Abstract
Positive relationships, including those between humans and other animals, particularly dogs, may be a way to reduce stress in humans. However, research into this area is relatively new, and a comprehensive review of the impacts of these interactions on humans and dogs has not been conducted. A scoping review of the scientific literature was conducted to explore what is known about the impacts of canine-assisted interventions on molecular biomarkers (e.g., cortisol and oxytocin) and associated measures (e.g., heart rate and blood pressure) of human and canine stress. As reported across 27 identified studies, canine-assisted interventions have consistently been demonstrated to elicit positive changes in human stress markers, and typically do not cause negative impacts on the studied canine stress markers. However, results were inconsistent across measures of stress. For example, in humans, it was common for a study to show improvements to cortisol levels but no change to self-reported stress, or vice versa. Many of the reviewed studies also had significant methodological issues, such as not aligning the timing of sample collections to when the analyzed stress biomarkers could be expected to peak. More rigorous research should be conducted on the impacts of canine-assisted interventions on a wider range of stress biomarkers.
Copyright Statement / License for Reuse
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Publication Statement
This article was originally published as:
Gandenberger, J., Flynn, E., Moratto, E., Wendt, A., & Morris, K. N. (2022). Molecular biomarkers of adult human and dog stress during canine-assisted interventions: A systematic scoping review. Animals, 12, 651. https://doi.org/ 10.3390/ani12050651
Rights Holder
Jaci Gandenberger, Erin Flynn, Em Moratto, Ashley Wendt, Kevin Morris
Provenance
Received from author
File Format
application/pdf
Language
English (eng)
Extent
14 pgs
File Size
621 KB
Publication Title
Animals
Volume
12
First Page
1
Last Page
12
ISSN
2076-2615
Recommended Citation
Gandenberger, Jaci; Flynn, Erin; Moratto, Em; Wendt, Ashley; and Morris, Kevin, "Molecular Biomarkers of Adult Human and Dog Stress During Canine-Assisted Interventions: A Systematic Scoping Review" (2022). Institute for Human-Animal Connection: Faculty Scholarship. 1.
https://digitalcommons.du.edu/ihac_faculty/1
https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12050651
DOI Link
https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12050651
Included in
Animal-Assisted Therapy Commons, Clinical and Medical Social Work Commons, Social Work Commons