ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the potential impact of companion animals as moderators of acute stressors specific to challenging tasks in the classroom setting. A biopsychosocial model provides a framework for understanding how multiple contributors can be related to chronic disease outcomes. The autonomic nervous system (ANS) activation in stress mainly stimulates the sympathetic nervous system and suppresses the parasympathetic nervous system. The first research examining the presence of a companion animal as a moderator of stress responses was an extension of research on the stress response related to interpersonal communication. A major challenge for future research is to determine for whom, and in what situation, an animal could moderate the stress response. The addition of a companion animal to a classroom may result in an environment more conducive to learning by reducing student stress and improving student behavior.
