A Comparative Study of Stress Reduction Groups With and Without Therapy Dogs in a Rural Pennsylvania Jail

Individuals who are incarcerated are often stressed, hopeless, and overwhelmed by this challenging life circumstance. Unfortunately, jails offer little treatment to assist in enhancing coping and fostering hope and resilience. This research study in a rural Pennsylvania jail provided four six-week coping and stress reduction groups, two with and two without therapy dogs. Findings indicate that all group participants experienced significant reductions in stress, improved resilience, and an increased sense of hope as measured by standardized scales. All four groups rated the interventions as very helpful.