Chute, AndreaVihos, JillJohnston, SharonBuro, KarenVelupillai, Nirudika2024-08-192024-08-192023Chute, A., Vihos, J., Johnston, S., Buro, K., & Velupillai, N. (2023) The effect of animal assisted intervention on undergraduate students’ perception of momentary stress. Frontiers in Psychology, 14:1253104. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1253104https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14078/3693Background: Student mental wellness is a priority in higher education. Animal Assisted Interventions (AAIs’) are gaining momentum in universities across North America (Dell et al., 2015). Aims: This study explored the relationships between AAIs’, demographic variables, and perceived momentary stress among university students. Methods: Using a descriptive correlational design, students completed a Perceived Momentary Stress questionnaire that included the Stress Numerical Rating Scale-11 (Stress NRS-11) and the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) to measure perceived stress before and after AAIs’. Data were analyzed using R (4.1.2) (R Core Team, Vienna, Austria) to identify relationships between students’ perceptions of momentary stress, AAIs’ and sociodemographic and demographic variables. Results: First-year students, female students, and students identifying as sexual minorities were found to benefit the most from AAIs’. Conclusion: Results from this study reflect relationships between exposure to animal-assisted interventions and student demographic variables.enAttribution (CC BY)student stressuniversity studentsanimal assisted interventionsmental healthdemographic characteristicsArticlehttps://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1253104