Research Question

How effective is pet therapy?

This question really interests me ever since I came to college and see signs in my dorm about dogs coming to visit the students as a way to relieve our stress. Having pets, I am curious as to how the relationships between humans and their pets impact the person. I do not know much about this except for what I have heard, so I think researching something like this will keep me interested in learning more about it and finding in depth research on pet therapy. I also love animals and see myself doing something for them in my future, so having the chance now to pick a topic to research, I thought this would be best.

I really want to study if pets really do help with stress or anxiety. I want to find how effective pet therapy is on patients in hospitals, students, etc. I also want to research a little about the importance of the relationships people have with their animals and how the relationships effect them, whether positive or negative. I hope to find good information on the topic. I might have to narrow my ideas down a bit, but that is the question I want to start with.