An interventional study of Canine Group in Examination Phobia, sponsored by La Trobe University. Recruiting at 1 site in Australia. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-09-14.
Sponsored by La Trobe University · Not applicable, Interventional, and Other
Physiotherapists work closely with patients to assess, diagnose and treat a variety of conditions. Thus, it is essential that education should assess these key competencies through both written examinations (to measure cognitive understanding) and practical examinations (to measure clinical skills). Practical examinations have been found to require more preparation and have been reported to be more anxiety-inducing than other forms of examination. One possible strategy to assist with reducing examination stress for students is canine interaction. In the inpatient hospital setting, animal-assisted therapy has found to be a safe and useful option for managing stress. Within the university setting, canine interaction has been shown to improve mood, affect, well-being and reduce stress. However, most of the previous work in this area did not investigate canine-intervention during exams. This study will utilise a randomised-controlled trial design to measure the impact of canine interaction immediately prior to practical examinations on perceived and physiological stress and determine if canine interaction impacts examination scores.
Physiotherapy education should prepare graduates to become physiotherapists who work closely with patients to effectively assess, diagnose and treat a variety of conditions. Thus, it is essential that physiotherapy education should also include evaluation that assesses these key skills and competencies. This could be through both written examinations (to measure cognitive skills) and practical exams, such as Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs), where students are required to apply their practical knowledge in a standardised, simulated environment. Practical exams usually include a student, a mock patient, a limited time in which a particular skill should be demonstrated and an assessor that provides a score of the student's performance. They are designed to determine whether a student has achieved a threshold of competence that will ideally ensure effective and safe practice in a real-world environment. Most students and assessors endorse practical examinations as a valuable form of feedback.
Despite their potential benefits, like other forms of examination, practical exams are a source of anxiety and stress for many students. Key sources of such exam stress include fear of failing (particularly in front of peers or assessors and "losing face"), not being able to retrieve knowledge under pressure, running out of time and inability to interpret the exam question. Practical exams require more preparation and have been reported to be more anxiety-inducing than other forms of examination, such as written exams. Examination stress is associated low self-esteem, anxiety, depression and poor sleep quality. While some exam-related stress can heighten exam performance, too much or too little stress can impact examination validity by impairing performance of actual ability. Therefore, in the interest of both student and assessor, it is imperative to reduce examination stress where possible so that student performance is better reflection of their actual skills and or competence.
One possible strategy to assist with reducing examination stress for students is canine interaction. In the inpatient hospital setting, animal-assisted therapy has found to be a safe and useful option for managing stress and has demonstrated greater stress reduction than other stress relieving methods such as reading, biofeedback and mindfulness. Within a university setting, canine interaction has been shown to improve mood, affect, well-being, reduce anxiety and stress. However, most of these studies did not investigate canine-intervention during an examination period, and of those which did, canine-intervention was performed some time before (from 60 minutes to two weeks), which allows time for additional stressors to influence findings. To date, there are no randomised studies that have been conducted specifically in physiotherapy students immediately before an OSCE. Therefore, the aims of this study are to (1) measure the impact of canine interaction immediately prior to a practical examination on perceived and physiological stress and (2) to determine if canine interaction impacts examination scores. Understanding the impact of canine interaction in this setting may provide a novel and relatively low-cost strategy to minimise examination stress immediately before an OSCE and boost grades.
Exclusion Criteria:
examination. During this time, they will be in a quiet room with the dog and a dog-handler. Participants will be instructed that they can freely interact with the dog (for example, observe, pat, hold, talk with the dog, play with the dog toys) within the room. The dog handler will observe and only interact if required to assist with participant or dog safety. The dog is a former Seeing Eye Dog in training who has been introduced to the students and will be re-familiarised with them prior to the trial by attending classes during this term.
Behavioral: Canine Group
Students placed in the control group will have a quiet room to sit in for 10 minutes immediately prior to their examination.
In a quiet room with a dog and dog handler, students will be able to freely interact with the dog prior to commencing their examinations. Both groups, intervention or control, participants will have their blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR) measured by a member of the research team and complete a short questionnaire (details below). The intervention/control will occur 10 minutes prior to the participant's allocated examination slot. Following their examination, participants will have their BP and HR measured by a member of the research team and be asked to rate their stress on a visual analogue scale again. Participants who received the intervention will be asked to report their interaction types with the dog and invited to participate in a focus group to discuss their experience in the trial.
Blood Pressure measurement
All participants will enter a holding room prior to their examination. Within 30 minutes of the intervention or control, participants will have their blood pressure (BP) measured by a member of the research team . The intervention/control will occur 10 minutes prior to the participant's allocated examination slot. Following the intervention/control, the participant will have their BP measured by a member of the research team and be asked to rate their stress on a visual analogue scale. They will then complete their examination which will last 30 minutes. Following their examination, participants will have their BP measure again by a member of the research team.
Time frame: 30 minutes prior to practical exam, immediately prior to the practical examination and five minutes after the examination
Completion of Stress Visual Analog Scale (SVAS)
Immediate perceived stress will be measured using the SVAS at Timepoints 1, 2 and 3. This scale ranges from 0 to 9, where 0 is "no stress" and 9 is "most severe imaginable". Visual Analog scales are widely used self-reported measures with acceptable validity and reliability in health outcomes such as pain, anxiety, feelings and mood. This scale has widely been used to measure the effect of canine-intervention in other studies. It will be self-administered via a RED Cap survey
Time frame: 30 minutes prior to the practical examination; immediately prior to commencing the examination, 5 minutes after the examination
Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10)
The PSS-10 is a 10-item scale where participants self-appraise their life stress over the past one month, with options ranging from "never" (zero) to "very often" (four). It has been found to be valid and reliable in students and will be collected prior to the examination. It will be self-administered via a REDCap survey.
Time frame: Immediately prior to the examination
Heart Rate
All participants will enter a holding room prior to their examination. Within 30 minutes of the intervention or control, participants will have their heart rate (HR) measured by a member of the research team . The intervention/control will occur 10 minutes prior to the participant's allocated examination slot. Following the intervention/control, the participant will have their HR measured by a member of the research team and be asked to rate their stress on a visual analogue scale. They will then complete their examination which will last 30 minutes. Following their examination, participants will have their HR measured by a member of the research team.
Time frame: Time Frame: 30 minutes prior to practical exam, immediately prior to the practical examination and five minutes after the examination
Plan to share: Undecided
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