治療犬能降低大學生的壓力

Animal lovers have long suspected that a little canine quality time was good for the soul, and now science has confirmed it - for students in particular.

喜歡動物的人士一直都懷疑：一小會兒的犬類優質時間能淨化心靈，現而今，科學證明了這一點--對學生而言尤爲有效。

The results of a new study done by researchers at the University of British Columbia concluded that the college students who spent time at drop-in dog therapy sessions experienced a boost in wellness and a reduction in overall stress. The study, as reported by Science Daily, indicates that playing with pups is not only popular with the students, it's also beneficial to their health. This finding was seen across gender.

不列顛哥倫比亞大學的研究人員開展了這項新研究，得出這樣的結果：對於旁聽犬類治療課的大學生而言，他們的身體健康得到了提升、整體壓力下降。正如《每日科學》所報道的那樣，這項研究表明：和狗狗互動不僅在學生羣中十分流行，而且也有利於他們的健康。這一研究結果是跨性別的。

"Therapy dog sessions are becoming more popular on university campuses, but there has been surprisingly little research on how much attending a single drop-in therapy dog session actually helps students," Emma Ward-Griffin, the study's lead author and UBC Department of Psychology research assistant, told Science Daily. "Our findings suggest that therapy dog sessions have a measurable, positive effect on the well-being of university students, particularly on stress reduction and feelings of negativity."

"大學校園中，治療犬課程變得越來越火，但關於旁聽一次治療犬課程究竟能給學生帶來多大幫助的研究卻驚人的少。"該研究的首席作者、不列顛哥倫比亞大學心理系的科研助理Emma Ward-Griffin對《每日科學》說道。"我們的研究結果表明：治療犬課程對大學生的整體健康有着可測量的積極影響，尤其能降低他們的壓力、讓他們不再那麼消極。"

The study, which published on March 12 in the journal Stress and Health, involved 246 students who were surveyed before and after they dropped by therapy dog sessions. The young participants were given free access to pet, cuddle with and talk to seven to 12 therapy dogs. Additionally, they filled out questionnaires right before and right after hanging with the dogs, as well as 10 hours later.

這項研究於3月12日發表在《壓力與健康》雜誌上，研究對象爲246名學生。研究員研究了他們旁聽治療犬課程前與旁聽後的狀況。年輕的受試者可以自由與寵物接觸，可以和7至12只治療犬擁抱、聊天。此外，與狗狗玩耍前、和狗狗玩耍結束時以及與狗狗玩耍結束的10小時後，這些受試者都填寫了問卷。

According to researchers, these young adults reported a notable increase in happiness, a significant reduction in stress and a surge of energy right after their sessions with the pups. Although the reported feelings of happiness and satisfaction weren't long-lasting, researchers say other effects have clear, positive advantages.

研究人員表示：這些年輕成年人的幸福度明顯增加、壓力水平明顯降低，與狗狗玩耍結束後，充滿了能量。雖然這種幸福感和滿足感並沒有持續很久，但研究人員表示，其它影響有着清晰的、積極的優勢。

"These sessions clearly provide benefits for students in the short-term, so we think universities should try to schedule them during particularly stressful times, such as around exam periods," Assistant Professor of Psychology at UBC and the study's senior author, Frances Chen told Science Daily. "Even having therapy dogs around while students are working on their out-of-class assignments could be helpful."

"顯然，這些課程給學生們帶來了短期益處，所以我們認爲各高校應該在學生壓力特別大的時候安排這種課程，比如臨近考試期間，"不列顛哥倫比亞大學心理系的助理教授、本研究的資深作者Frances Chen對《每日科學》說道。"即使學生們做課外作業時有治療犬陪着也是有益的。"