ABSTRACT Pets can reduce stress in their owner; however, they are not always permitted in public and institutional places. This study examined the impact of people viewing a picture of their pet versus other images on stress levels. One hundred and twenty participants were randomly assigned to one of six conditions. These involved completing a mental arithmetic task while viewing a picture of either their personal pet; an unfamiliar animal; a familiar, supportive person; a stranger; a pleasant image of nature; or no image. Stress was measured through subjective and physiological methods. For participants, viewing a picture of their pet did not reduce their stress response to the task, while viewing a picture of a familiar, supportive person increased the stress response, relative to the controls. Post-stressor, participants in the personal-pet condition rated the picture as making them feel more relaxed, compared with the other conditions. Active interaction with a pet may be required to reduce stress.

中文翻译：

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在心算任务中查看宠物的图片是否会降低压力水平？

摘要 宠物可以减轻主人的压力；然而，在公共和机构场所并不总是允许他们这样做。这项研究检查了人们查看宠物图片与其他图片对压力水平的影响。一百二十名参与者被随机分配到六个条件之一。这些包括在查看他们的私人宠物的照片时完成心算任务；陌生的动物；一个熟悉的、支持的人；一个陌生人; 令人愉快的自然形象；或没有图像。压力是通过主观和生理方法测量的。对于参与者来说，与对照组相比，查看他们宠物的照片并没有减少他们对任务的压力反应，而查看一个熟悉的、支持他的人的照片会增加他们的压力反应。后应激源，与其他条件相比，个人宠物条件下的参与者认为这张照片让他们感到更放松。可能需要与宠物积极互动以减轻压力。