The Role of Pets in University Student's Mental Health

Posjedovanje kućnih ljubimaca traje već stoljećima, a veoma je često u današnjem društvu gdje velik broj kućanstava ima barem jednog kućnog ljubimca. Sami kućni ljubimci na brojne načine utječu na svoje vlasnike, mogu imati zaštitnu funkciju, biti izvor ljubavi i podrške te imati pozitivan utjecaj na zdravlje vlasnika. S obzirom na velik broj istraživanja koja proučavaju ulogu kućnih ljubimaca u mentalnom zdravlju, a nedostatan broj istraživanja ove tematike u Hrvatskoj, cilj ovog istraživanje jest ispitati ulogu kućnih ljubimaca u mentalnom zdravlju studenata u Republici Hrvatskoj. Sudionici podijeljeni su u dvije skupine, oni koji imaju i oni koji nemaju kućne ljubimce. Uspoređivali su se rezultati dobiveni na skalama koje mjere depresivnost, anksioznost, usamljenost, intenzitet stresa i kvalitetu života te je pokazano kako ne postoji statistički značajna razlika između dvije navedene skupine. Odnosno, studenti koji imaju kućne ljubimce i oni koji ih nemaju nisu se značajno razlikovali po depresivnosti, anksioznosti, usamljenosti, intenzitetu stresa ni kvaliteti života.People have owned pets for centuries, but it is especially common in today's society where many homes have at least one pet. Pets affect their owners in many ways, they can have a role in maintaining security, they can be a source of love and support and have a positive affect on the health of owners. Considering the large amount of research that studies the role of pets in mental health and the small number of studies in Croatia that have addresses this topic, the aim of this study is to examine the role of pets in the mental health of Croatian students. Participants were put into two groups, those that have pets and those that do not. The results on measures of depression, anxiety, loneliness, stress intensity and quality of life were compared between the two groups. A statstically significant difference between groups was not found. Therefore, students that have pets and those that do not did not show a significant difference in depression, anxiety, loneliness, stress intensity or quality of life