New Study Says Bringing Dogs to Work Reduces Stress

Bringing dogs to the workplace can boost employee morale and professional satisfaction and can reduce overall stress, a new study says. Surveying a Greensboro, NC manufacturing-retail company with a staff of 550, Researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University found that employees reported experiencing less stress during the course of the workday when their dogs were present, and reported significantly more stress when dogs were left at home. Interestingly, scientists observed that dogs seemed to have a positive impact on all employees, not just the dog guardians. Though not measured in the study, researchers observed employees offering to walk their colleagues’ dogs—a positive exchange that may have contributed to stress-reduction.