B.A.R.K. Team

John-Tyler Binfet, Founder & Director

Dr. Binfet is the founder and director of UBC’s dog therapy program titled “Building Academic Retention through K9s” or B.A.R.K. Founded in 2012, this program is housed within the Okanagan School of Education and provides social and emotional support to students, primarily around stress reduction. Currently, there are 60 therapy dog teams working on behalf of B.A.R.K. in various programs at UBC and in the surrounding community. In addition to assessing the effects of canine-assisted interventions, Dr. Binfet’s work examines how best to screen, train, and assess therapy dogs and their handlers for work in on-campus and community programs and research.

In 2019, Binfet co-authored a book titled “Canine-Assisted Interventions: A Comprehensive Guide to Credentialing Therapy Dog Teams” with Hartwig from Texas State University. More recently, Binfet worked with Tardif-Williams from Brock University and co-authored “Virtual Human-Animal Interactions: Supporting Learning, Social Connections and Well-being.”

Dr. Binfet’s research has two distinct streams: 1) Understanding students’ conceptualizations of kindness in school; and 2) the effects of Canine-Assisted Interventions on the well-being of varied participants (including children, university students, and police officers).

View Dr. Binfet’s full list of publications and presentations on education.ok.ubc.ca.

Professional Associations/Affiliations/Committees

President Elect & Secretary for Development for International Society for Anthrozoology (ISAZ) conference
Editorial Board Member for Human-Animal Interaction Bulletin and Anthrozoos
Board Member for International Society for Anthrozoology (ISAZ)

Freya Green, Program Coordinator

Originally from Hampshire, England, Freya has been involved with B.A.R.K. since 2013. She began as an undergraduate volunteer in her first year of university – acting as a photographer, student mentor in the Building Confidence and Kindness through K9s Program, and a B.A.R.K.2Go volunteer. In 2017, she completed her B.A. Psychology Honours research with the B.A.R.K. program and explored the effects of canine-assisted interventions on social connectedness in first-year undergraduates. Freya is also an Okanagan School of Education Master of Arts in Education alumni. Her M.A. research explored the effects of a detachment-based canine-assisted intervention on police members’ well-being.

In 2018, she filled the role of B.A.R.K. program coordinator and now assists with the planning, administration, and implementation of on-campus and community-based B.A.R.K. programs. In addition, Freya coordinates B.A.R.K. research projects, monitors canine and handler welfare, and is a member of the B.A.R.K. assessment team.

Her research interests include examining the effects of canine-assisted interventions on first-responder and student well-being and understanding the mechanisms within canine-assisted interventions that elicit well-being outcomes. Learn more about Freya and her research in this UBC In the Field Feature.

Related Publications

Book Chapters

Binfet, J. T., & Green, F. L. L. (2024). Building Academic Retention through K9s (B.A.R.K.): Supporting college students at the University of British Columbia. In A. H. Fine, M. Mueller, Z. Ng, T Chastain Griffin, & P. Tedeschi (Eds.), Handbook on Animal-Assisted Therapy: Foundations and Guidelines for Animal-Assisted Interventions (pp. 458-461). Academic Press.

Binfet, J. T., Rousseau, C. X., & Green, F. L. L. (2024). AAI in Special Settings: Hospitals, Colleges, & Correctional Facilities. In A. H. Fine, M. Mueller, Z. Ng, T Chastain Griffin, & P. Tedeschi (Eds.), Handbook on Animal-Assisted Therapy: Foundations and Guidelines for Animal-Assisted Interventions (pp. 373-387). Academic Press.

Journal Publications

Green, F. L. L., Dahlman, M. L., Lomness, A., & Binfet, J. T. (2024). For the love of acronyms: An analysis of terminology and acronyms used in AAI research 2013–2023. Human-Animal Interactions, 12(1). https://doi.org/10.1079/hai.2024.0024

Binfet, J. T., Green, F. L. L., Godard, R. J. P., Rousseau, C. X., Szypula, M. M., & Decker, J. (2023). A mixed-methods examination of an on-campus canine-assisted intervention by gender: Men, women, and gender diverse students’ self-reports of stress-reduction and well-being. Human-Animal Interaction, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.1079/hai.2023.0037

Green, F. L. L. & Binfet, J. T. (2023). Beyond Cuddling Canines: Exploring Students’ Perceptions of the Importance of Touch in an On-Campus Canine-Assisted Intervention. Emerging Adulthood, 11(5). https://doi.org/10.1177/21676968231188754

Tardif-Williams, C. Y., Binfet, J. T., Green, F. L. L., Roma, R. P. S., Singal, A., Rousseau, C. X., & Godard, R. J. P. (2023). When Therapy Dogs Provide Virtual Comfort: Exploring University Students’ Insights and Perspectives, People and Animals, 6(1). https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/paij/vol6/iss1/5

Rodriguez, K. E., Green, F. L. L., Binfet, J. T., Townsend, L., & Gee, N. R. (2023). Complexities and considerations in conducting animal-assisted intervention research: A discussion of randomized controlled trials. Human-Animal Interactions. https://doi.org/10.1079/hai.2023.0004

Binfet, J. T., Tardif-Williams, C. Y., Draper, Z. A., Green, F. L. L., Singal, A., Rousseau, C. X., & Roma, R. (2022). Virtual Canine Comfort: A Randomized Controlled Trial of the Effects of a Canine-Assisted Intervention Supporting Undergraduate Wellbeing, Anthrozoös. https://doi.org/10.1080/08927936.2022.2062866

Binfet, J. T., Green, F. L. L., & Draper, Z. A. (2022). The Importance of Client–Canine Contact in Canine-Assisted Interventions: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Anthrozoös. https://doi.org/10.1080/08927936.2021.1944558.

Green, F. L. L. & Binfet, J. T. (2021). Therapy dogs, stress-reduction, and well-being within the detachment: Interviews with law-enforcement personnel. Human Animal Interaction Bulletin, 11(1), 10-35. https://doi.org/10.1079/hai.2021.0018

Binfet, J. T., Draper, Z. A., & Green, F. L. L. (2020). Stress reduction in law enforcement officers and staff through a canine-assisted intervention. Human Animal Interaction Bulletin, 8(2), 34-52. https://doi.org/10.1079/hai.2020.0011

Rousseau, C. X., Binfet, J. T., Green, F. L. L., Tardif-Williams, C., Draper, Z. A., & Maynard, A. (2020). Up the leash: An investigation of handler well-being and perceptions of volunteering in canine-assisted interventions. Pet Behavior Science, 10, 15-35. https://doi.org/10.21071/pbs.vi10.12598

Conference Presentations

Green, F. L. L., Dahlman, M. L., Lomness, A., & Binfet, J. T. (2024, June 29). For the love of acronyms: An analysis of terminology and acronyms used in AAI research 2013–2023. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Hartpury, England.

Green, F. L. L., Willcox, A. A., & Binfet, J. T. (2024, June 28). Assessing therapy dog-handler teams: A content analysis of 10-years of positive and negative evaluation comments. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Hartpury, England.

Binfet, J. T., Green, F. L. L., Godard, R. J. P., & Willcox, A. A. (2024, June 28). Reducing loneliness in the post-secondary context: A canine-assisted intervention pilot study. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Hartpury, England.

Binfet, J. T., Green, F. L. L., Tardif-Williams, C. Y., Godard, R. J. P., Singal, A., Rousseau, C. X., Roma, R., Willcox, A. A. (2023, June 17). Virtual connections with canines: Therapy dogs reducing undergraduate student stress. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Edinburgh, Scotland.

Binfet, J. T., Green, F. L. L., Godard, R. J. P., Rousseau, C. X., Szypula, M. M., & Decker, J. (2023, June 16). Exploring gender differences in stress reduction of university students attending a canine-assisted intervention. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Edinburgh, Scotland.

Binfet, J. T., Tardif-Williams, C., Draper, Z. A., Green, F. L. L., Singal, A., Rousseau, C. X., & Roma, R. (2022, Nov. 3rd). Exploring how virtual interactions with therapy dogs enhances undergraduate student well-being. Paper presented at the International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Conference, Kelowna, BC, Canada.

Papers presented for Symposium at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Boise, Idaho (Virtual). Virtual Canine Comfort: Considerations and Findings from Virtual Canine-Assisted Interventions

Paper 1: Dell, C., Williamson, L., McKenzie, H., Carey, B., Cruz, M., Gibson, M., & Pavelich, A. (2022, July). Lessons Learned: Transitioning a therapy dog program online during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Paper 2: Binfet, J. T., Tardif-Williams, C. Y., Green, F. L. L., Roma, R., Singal, A., Rousseau, C. X., & Godard, R. J. P. (2022, July). Supporting college student well-being through virtual interactions with therapy dogs: Findings from a randomized controlled trial.
Paper 3: Tardif-Williams, C. Y., Binfet, J. T., Green, F. L. L., Roma, R., Singal, A., Rousseau, C. X., & Godard, R. J. P. (2022, July). Exploring college students’ perceptions of a virtual canine intervention.

Binfet, J. T., Tardif-Williams, C. Y., Draper, Z. A., Green, F. L. L., Singal, A., Rousseau, C. X., & Roma, R. (2022, April 22). Stress-reduction in college students: Can virtual interactions with therapy dogs bolster well-being? Poster presented at the annual conference of the American Educational Research Association, San Diego, California.

Symposium at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Buffalo, NY (Virtual). University-Based Animal-Assisted Interventions (AAIs): Theory and Research Toward Identifying Direct and Indirect Effects of Active Components on Stress-Related Outcomes

Paper 1: Pendry, P. (2021, June 23). Touch Expect and Support Theory (TEST): A pathway model describing active components of University-based AAIs on proximal and distal stress-related outcomes.
Paper 2: Vandagriff, J. L., & Pendry, P. (2021, June 23). Teasing Out Effective AAI Components of a University-Based Animal Visitation Program on Students’ Physiological Arousal and Regulation.
Paper 3: Binfet, J. T., Green, F. L. L., & Draper, Z. A. (2021, June 23). The Importance of Touch in On-Campus Canine-Assisted Stress-Reduction Interventions: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Binfet, J. T., Kjellstrand Hartwig, E., & Green, F. L. L. (2020, September). Taking off the vest:
When should a dog be Retired? Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Liverpool, UK.

Green, F. L. L. & Binfet, J. T., (2020, September). Uncovering the views of law enforcement personnel who participated in a canine-assisted intervention: A case study. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Liverpool, UK.

Binfet, J. T., Draper, Z. A., & Green, F. L. L. (2019, July 4). Reducing stress in law enforcement officers and staff through a canine-assisted intervention. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Orlando, Florida.

Rousseau, C. X., Draper, Z. A., Binfet, J. T. Tardif-Williams, C. & Green, F. L. L. (2019, July 4). Exploring handlers’ wellbeing in an on-campus canine-assisted intervention. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Orlando, Florida.

Media Features

Television

KelownaNow (2023, Feb. 14). Dogs storm seniors’ home for Valentine’s Day.

Castanet (2023, Feb. 14). Therapy dogs visit Kelowna retirement home.

Podcasts

Human Animal Interaction Section – Podcast with Freya Green (2024, Aug 7)

Human Animal Interaction Section – Podcast with Freya Green (2024, Jan 10)

Print

The Phoenix News (2021, November 20) Behind the B.A.R.K.

Global News Canada (2021, Aug. 19). Hugging a dog good for mental well-being, B.C. study suggests.

UBC In the Field (2021, June 2). Keep Calm and B.A.R.K. On.

Kelowna Daily Courier (2020, Feb. 14). Love goes to the dogs for Valentine’s day.

Castanet (2018, December 9). Reducing Stress in Students.

Okanagan Stories (2017). Unleashed Potential.

Student Researchers of b.a.r.k.

We greatly appreciate students’ efforts and talents in assisting with or conducting research initiatives.

Below are students who are in the process of completing, or who have completed, their honours or graduate research with the B.A.R.K. program.

Mikaela Dahlman

Mikaela graduated with a BA in Psychology from UBC in 2023 and has completed her animal-assisted wellness certificate from Lakeland College. Her research interests include canine-assisted interventions to support wellbeing of students/first-responders, canine welfare within animal-assisted interventions, and the use of terminology within the field of human-animal interactions.

She has also been a B.A.R.K. volunteer since 2021.

Related Publications and Presentations

Zakary Draper

Zakary is a PhD student in the department of Psychology. His research interests include: Quantitative methods and statistics; technology and wellbeing in families with young children.

Related Publications and Presentations

Evans, C., Cipolli, W., Draper, Z. A., & Binfet, J. T. (2023). Repurposing a peer-reviewed publication to engage students in statistics: An illustration of study design, data collection, and analysis, Journal of Statistics and Data Science Education, https://doi.org/10.1080/26939169.2023.2238018

Binfet, J. T., Green, F. L. L., & Draper, Z. A. (2021). The Importance of Client–Canine Contact in Canine-Assisted Interventions: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Anthrozoös. https://doi.org/10.1080/08927936.2021.1944558.

Paper 1: Pendry, P. (2021, June 23). Touch Expect and Support Theory (TEST): A pathway model describing active components of University-based AAIs on proximal and distal stress-related outcomes.
Paper 2: Vandagriff, J. L., & Pendry, P. (2021, June 23). Teasing Out Effective AAI Components of a University-Based Animal Visitation Program on Students’ Physiological Arousal and Regulation.
Paper 3: Binfet, J. T., Green, F. L. L., & Draper, Z. A. (2021, June 23). The Importance of Touch in On-Campus Canine-Assisted Stress-Reduction Interventions: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Rebecca Godard

Rebecca Godard is a PhD student in psychological science in the Department of Psychology. Her research interests include social media use, well-being and social support in online contexts, and quantitative methods.

Relevant Publications and Presentations:

Binfet, J. T., Green, F. L. L., Godard, R. J. P., Rousseau, C. X., Syzpula, M. M., & Decker, J. (2023). A mixed-methods examination of an on-campus canine-assisted intervention by gender: Men, women, and gender diverse students’ self-reports of stress-reduction and well-being. Human-Animal Interaction, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.1079/hai.2023.0037

Paper 1: Dell, C., Williamson, L., McKenzie, H., Carey, B., Cruz, M., Gibson, M., & Pavelich, A. (2022, July). Lessons Learned: Transitioning a therapy dog program online during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Paper 2: Binfet, J. T., Tardif-Williams, C. Y., Green, F. L. L., Roma, R., Singal, A., Rousseau, C. X., & Godard, R. J. P. (2022, July). Supporting college student well-being through virtual interactions with therapy dogs: Findings from a randomized controlled trial.
Paper 3: Tardif-Williams, C. Y., Binfet, J. T., Green, F. L. L., Roma, R., Singal, A., Rousseau, C. X., & Godard, R. J. P. (2022, July). Exploring college students’ perceptions of a virtual canine intervention.

Nicole Harris

Nicole received her Master of Arts in Education in 2020. Her study explored what it was like for children to participate in a social skills training program facilitated by therapy dogs. University volunteers collected observations of the children and eight children were interviewed by the researcher. Findings indicated that, overall, the children enjoyed the social skills training program with dogs and the therapy dogs provided unique benefits. Interacting with the therapy dogs improved the children’s moods and increased their engagement. It also showed evidence of the therapy dogs providing some emotional and behavioural benefits.

Learn more about Nicole and her research in this Okanagan School of Education spotlight.

Related Publications and Presentations

Harris, N. M. & Binfet, J. T. (2022) Exploring Children’s Perceptions of an After-School Canine-Assisted Social and Emotional Learning Program: A Case Study. Journal of Research in Childhood Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/02568543.2020.1846643

Harris, N. M., & Binfet, J. T. (2020, September). A case study exploring children’s experience participating in a canine-assisted social-emotional learning program. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Liverpool, UK.

Symposium at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Sydney, Australia. Therapy canines: Screening and assessment, safeguarding well-being, and innovative programming.

Paper 1: Hartwig, E., & Binfet, J. T. (2018, July 4). What’s important in screening therapy canines?: A review of 320 North American canine assisted programs.
Paper 2: Silas, H. J., Calibaba, B., & Binfet, J. T. (2018, July 4). Safeguarding therapy canine well-being: Educating the public to recognize stress indicators in working canines.
Paper 3: McKay, C., Harris, N., & Binfet, J. T. (2018, July 4). Building confidence through K9’s: A pilot program to build children’s leadership through interactions with therapy canines.

Holly-Anne Passmore

Holly-Anne was a Ph.D. student in the Department of Psychology, UBC, and graduated in 2019.

Related Publications and Presentations
Binfet, J. T., Passmore, H. A., Cebry, A., Struik, K., & McKay, C. (2017). Reducing university students’ stress through a drop-in canine-therapy program. Journal of Mental Health, 1-30.

Binfet, J. T. & Passmore, H. A. (2016). Hounds and homesickness: The effects of an animal-assisted therapeutic intervention for first-year university students. Anthrozoös, 29, 441-454. https://doi.org/10.1080/08927936.2016.1181364

Binfet, J. T., Passmore, H. A., Cebry, A., Struik, K., & McKay, C. (2017, June 24). Reducing university students’ stress through a drop-in canine-therapy program. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Davis, California (June 22-25).

Binfet, J. T., & Passmore, H. A. (2016). Hounds and homesickness: The effects of an animal-assisted therapeutic intervention for first-year students. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Barcelona, Spain (July 9).

Camille Rousseau

Camille successfully completed her interdisciplinary Ph.D. within the Okanagan School of Education under the supervision of Dr. Binfet in 2024.

Camille completed her Master’s degree at Brock University in St. Catharines, Ont. where she focused on animal-assisted reading intervention for children. She is now committed to improving the school experience of children with Public Speaking Anxiety. Her research will explore the role of therapy dogs in fostering public speaking confidence and competency.

She is also a volunteer with the B.A.R.K. program.

Learn more about Camille and her PhD research in this UBC Spotlight.

Related Publications and Presentations

Rousseau, C. X. & Binfet, J. T. (2023). Publication trends in Society & Animals from 2009-2019: A bibliometric analysis. Society & Animals, 44(4). https://doi.org/10.1163/15685306-bja10136

Rousseau, C. X. & Binfet, J. T. (2022). The who, where, and what of publications in the Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science from 2009-2019: A bibliometric analysis. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, 25(1), 98-113. https://doi.org/10.1080/10888705.2021.1980727

Tardif-Williams, C. Y., Binfet, J.T., & Rousseau, C. X. (2019). Shifting preservice teachers’ views of animal welfare and advocacy through a human-animal relationships course. Society & Animals, 1(opa), 1-22. https://doi.org/10.1163/15685306-12341640

Rousseau, C. X., Tardif-Williams, C.Y. (2019). Turning the page for Spot: The potential of therapy dogs to support reading motivation among young children. Anthrozoös. 32(5), 665-677. https://doi.org/10.1080/08927936.2019.1645511

Rousseau, C. X., Willcox, A. A., & Binfet, J. T. (2024, June 28). Pups Uplifting Public Speaking: Developing key components of a pilot canine-assisted intervention for children with public speaking anxiety. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Hartpury, England.

Rousseau, C. X., Binfet, J. T., & Willcox, A. A. (2023, June 16). Understanding handlers’ perspectives: Under-explored pillars supporting canine-assisted interventions. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Edinburgh, Scotland.

Paper 1: Dell, C., Williamson, L., McKenzie, H., Carey, B., Cruz, M., Gibson, M., & Pavelich, A. (2022, July). Lessons Learned: Transitioning a therapy dog program online during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Paper 2: Binfet, J. T., Tardif-Williams, C. Y., Green, F. L. L., Roma, R., Singal, A., Rousseau, C. X., & Godard, R. J. (2022, July). Supporting college student well-being through virtual interactions with therapy dogs: Findings from a randomized controlled trial.
Paper 3: Tardif-Williams, C. Y., Binfet, J. T., Green, F. L. L., Roma, R., Singal, A., Rousseau, C. X., & Godard, R. J. (2022, July). Exploring college students’ perceptions of a virtual canine intervention.

Rousseau, C. X. & Binfet, J. T. (2020, September). When it comes to animals, what are scholars publishing about?: A bibliometric analysis of publications across three HAI journals. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Liverpool, UK.

Tardiff-Williams, C., Binfet, J. T., & Rousseau, C. (2017, October 12). Connections between preservice teachers’ conceptualizations of child-animal interactions and views about promoting humane education in the classroom. Paper presented at the 2017 Conceptualizing Children and Youth Conference, St. Catharines, Canada.

Tardiff-Williams, C., Binfet, J. T., & Rousseau, C. (2017). Fostering agents of change: Laying the foundations for professional advocacy through participation in an undergraduate course on human-animal interactions. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Davis, California (June 22-25).

Haley Silas

Haley completed her BSc honours research with Dr. Ford (Biology) and Dr. Binfet (Education). Their research explored whether participating in sessions increased the stress of working therapy dogs in an effort to answer the question: Does the very intervention designed to reduce stress in humans, augment the stress of therapy dogs? Read their article Therapeutic for all? Observational assessments of therapy canine stress in an on-campus stress-reduction program.

Related Publications and Presentations

Silas, H. J., Binfet, J. T., & Ford, A. (2019). Therapeutic for all? Observational assessments of therapy canine stress in an on-campus stress reduction program. Journal of Veterinary Behavior: Clinical Applications and Research, 32, 6-13. doi: 10.1016/j.jveb.2019.03.009

Binfet, J. T., Silas, H. J., Longfellow, S. W., & Widmaier, K. (2018). When veterinarians support canine therapy: Bidirectional benefits for clinics and therapy programs. Veterinary Sciences (early online edition) doi: 10.3390/vetsci5010002

Binfet, J. T., Trotman, M. L., Henstock, H. D., & Silas, H. J. (2016). Reducing the affective filter: Using canine-assisted therapy to support international students’ English language development. BC Teaching English as an Additional Language, 1, 18-37.

Silas, H. J., & Binfet, J. T. (2018, July 4). Therapeutic for all? Observational assessments of therapy canine stress during sessions. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Sydney, Australia.

Symposium at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Sydney, Australia. Therapy canines: Screening and assessment, safeguarding well-being, and innovative programming.

Akshat Singal

Akshat graduated with a BSc in Computer Science in 2023. His research interests include making technology more accessible and using technology to improve the quality and reach of existing endeavours such as the BARK program.

He has also been a B.A.R.K. volunteer since 2019.

Related Publications and Presentations

Binfet, J. T., Green, F. L. L., Tardif-Williams, C. Y., Godard, R. J. P., Singal, A., Rousseau, C. X., Roma, R., Wilcox, A. (2023, June 17). Virtual connections with canines: Therapy dogs reducing undergraduate student stress. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Edinburgh, Scotland.

Paper 1: Dell, C., Williamson, L., McKenzie, H., Carey, B., Cruz, M., Gibson, M., & Pavelich, A. (2022, July). Lessons Learned: Transitioning a therapy dog program online during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Paper 2: Binfet, J. T., Tardif-Williams, C. Y., Green, F. L. L., Roma, R., Singal, A., Rousseau, C. X., & Godard, R. J. (2022, July). Supporting college student well-being through virtual interactions with therapy dogs: Findings from a randomized controlled trial.
Paper 3: Tardif-Williams, C. Y., Binfet, J. T., Green, F. L. L., Roma, R., Singal, A., Rousseau, C. X., & Godard, R. J. (2022, July). Exploring college students’ perceptions of a virtual canine intervention.

Kathryn Struik

Kathryn completed her M.A in Education under the supervision of Dr. Binfet in 2016. Her research focussed on exploring the role of companion canines for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Read her thesis.

Related Publications and Presentations

Binfet, J. T. & Struik, K. (2018). Dogs on campus: Holistic assessment of therapy dogs and handlers for research and community initiatives. Society & Animals, 1-30.

Binfet, J. T., Passmore, H. A., Cebry, A., Struik, K., & McKay, C. (2017). Reducing university students’ stress through a drop-in canine-therapy program. Journal of Mental Health, 1-30.

Struik, K. & Binfet, J.T. (2017) Child-canine bonding in children with ASD: Findings within and across case studies. Animalia, 1-30

Binfet, J. T., Passmore, H. A., Cebry, A., Struik, K., & McKay, C. (2017, June 24). Reducing university students’ stress through a drop-in canine-therapy program. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Davis, California (June 22-25).

Struik, K., & Binfet, J. T. (2016, July 8). Canine-child bonding in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Findings within and across case studies. Poster presented at the annual conference of the International Society for Anthrozoology, Barcelona, Spain.

Madisyn Szypula

Madisyn Szypula graduated with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Mechanical Engineering in 2023 from UBCO and is currently obtaining her Master of Applied Science in Mechanical Engineering. Her research interests include equity, diversity and inclusion within student spaces and sustainable practices.

She has also been a B.A.R.K. Volunteer since 2019.

Learn more about Madisyn’s work and B.A.R.K. involvement in this UBC Applied Science spotlight.

Related Publications and Presentations

Megan Trotman

Megan Trotman graduated with a Bachelor of Human Kinetics in 2016 and a Master of Science in 2020 both from UBC Okanagan.

Related Publications and Presentations

Binfet, J. T., Trotman, M. L., Henstock, H. D., & Silas, H. J. (2016). Reducing the affective filter: Using canine-assisted therapy to support international students’ English language development. BC Teaching English as an Additional Language, 1, 18-37.

Trotman, M., & Binfet, J. T. (2016). Reducing the affective filter: Using canine-assisted therapy to support international students’ English language development. Paper presented at the annual conference of the International Association of Human-Animal Interaction Organizations, Paris, France (July 13).

Amelia Willcox

Amelia is graduated with a BSc in Biology and Psychology in 2024. Her research interests include supporting student well-being through in-person and virtual canine-assisted interventions and understanding high school students’ perceptions of kindness.

She has also been a B.A.R.K. volunteer since 2018.

Related Publications and Presentations

About

B.A.R.K. Team

John-Tyler Binfet, Founder & Director

Professional Associations/Affiliations/Committees

Freya Green, Program Coordinator

Student Researchers of b.a.r.k.