Have you ever wondered how your dog thinks? Understanding canine psychology can help you know what drives your furry friend better.
According to the British Psychological Society, psychology is defined as
“the scientific study of the mind and how it dictates and influences our behaviour, from communication and memory to thought and emotion.”
While it started out as a study involving the human mind in the 1860s, the quest to understand the mind of the ‘man’s best friend’ started decades later.
This term dog psychology goes back to 1964 when biologist and veterinarian Leon Whitney published the book Dog Psychology: The Basis of Dog Training. In 2006, the term gained more popularity when the TV series Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan was released on National Geographic. In this article, we will dive in to have a glimpse of the dog’s mind—from what drives their instincts and to what inspires their loyalty.
The Three Main Theories of Dog Psychology
There are different theories of dog psychology, but the primary ones are Rudolph Schenkel’s pack mentality, Ivan Pavlov’s classical conditioning, and B.F. Skinner’s operant conditioning and positive reinforcement.
In 1947, Schenkel published the paper Expression Studies on Wolves. This theory of dog psychology compares dog behaviour to that of wolves, and it has been referenced and examined for many decades now. Schenkel learned that packs of captive wolves created a social hierarchy through moments of aggression. Generally, a male-female pair of wolves functioned as leaders and would use aggressive behaviour to make sure the rest of their group is on the same page. Later on, animal behaviourists started applying the findings regarding wolf behaviour to domestic dogs as a method of studying dog psychology. This contributed to the Dominance and the Alpha Dog Psychology Theory. In a nutshell, it believed that just like wolves, dogs think the human members of a household belong to their pack. A dog owner should establish themselves as the ‘alpha’ over the dog to foster harmony. However, it is worth noting, that several modern behaviourists like David Mech discourage applying the theory of pack hierarchy in any home because of several flaws in the studies that developed the concept.
In the late 1800s, Pavlov conducted a series of studies including the experiment involving dogs, which led to the Classical Conditioning theory. He was the first academician who was able to show that dogs can be conditioned to pair two entirely unrelated events in their mind. Pavlov was able to ‘train’ his dogs to salivate at the sound of a buzzer—whether there’s food or none—just because he rang a buzzer before his dogs every day. Later on, this led to ideas like conditioning dogs to learn with the help of whistles and clickers by pairing these distinct sounds with food or other treats. Dogs can also be conditioned to relax in their bed or space by associating the area with toys, rewards, or a peaceful environment. For dogs with behavioural problems like aggression, Pavlov’s study shows they can be tamed or retrained using counter-conditioning, which re-associates triggers or negative markers with positive happenings.
In the 1900s, B.F. Skinner studied dog behaviour and set several studies to understand human and dog psychology on a deeper level. The results he has come up with discovered another way of learning of animals and eventually led to the Operant Conditioning theory. Its concept states the behaviour of an animal or person can be trained by applying positive or negative stimuli—rewards or punishments—following specific actions. If a reward always follows a specific behaviour, the animal will keep doing that behaviour to earn the treat. Conversely, if a form of punishment comes after a particular action, the animal will avoid doing that so it can avoid the penalty. This applies to dogs as well and has been used to shape their behaviour.
Despite these theories, there are things you should take note of. Domestic dogs and wild dogs have various behaviour patterns. There is a wide range of personality traits across different breeds and various individual dogs. You cannot assume pet dogs will act in the same way dogs in laboratory settings did.
Understanding your dog’s mind
Completely putting yourself in your dog’s shoes is impossible because humans do not exactly know how a dog feels or thinks. We tend to humanise dogs, and this thinking called anthropomorphism is what makes canine psychology intriguing. Hence, one of the ways to understand your dog’s mind is to remember that humans are different from dogs. You cannot expect them to do what you would do in a situation because you two are different. For starters, dogs don’t have the rational capacity of a human. They also can’t generalise well enough. For instance, they might not get the same command you taught in your room when you give that command at someone else’s house. It’s not that they did not understand you; it’s just that the setting was different, and dogs have to be taught specific actions in specific situations or places for them to remember. Dogs also mainly communicate through their scent and body language. They vocalise, but they don’t verbalise their thoughts. Some believe they can also grasp the feelings of the humans around them. This can be the reason they are good comforters when their owners are sad.
Recognising your dog’s nature
While the domesticated dogs we know now are mostly loving, it is still worth remembering that they descended from wolves around 15,000 to 40,000 years ago. With this, it is helpful to keep the three primary drives among dogs: the prey drive, the defence drive, and the pack drive.
The prey drive roots from the dog’s predatory instincts to search for food. This makes them want to track, chase, grab, and harm things. When they have something, they may also protect it from being taken away. This becomes a problem when dogs chase runners, vehicles, or kids, especially when it leads to biting. Games such as fetch can be good outlets for this drive.
On the other hand, the defence drive usually refers to the ‘fight or flight’ instinct. It includes other actions such as freezing, avoiding eye contact, and other forms of submissive behaviours. Submission can be a good thing as long as it is done out of trust and not fear. As much as possible, do not push a dog to reach the state of fight or flight.
Lastly, the pack drive or social drive is the dog’s motivation to have interactions with others and belong to a pack or a team. Some dogs can be independent, but mostly, they are not meant to lead an isolated life. Dogs can have powerful bonds with other dogs and other species. They can be contented and joyful in a family without another dog, but it is also helpful if they can socialise with other friends of their kind.
Understanding canine psychology through dog play
University of Colorado Boulder Professor Marc Bekoff, PhD said in Psychology Today that studying dog play reveals a lot about fairness, empathy, and trust. Based on comprehensive research, his team has discovered that dogs exhibit four aspects of basic play: ask first, be honest, follow the rules, and admit when you’re wrong. Dogs are attentive to what’s happening around them when they play. They can analyse what other dogs are doing, and they believe others want to play and not get into a fight. They understand each other’s thoughts and use gestures to invite to play or to say sorry. There is more emerging evidence of dogs having a theory of mind, and research on play confirms it.
Understanding your dog’s loyalty
They say the most fundamental reason here is you feed your dogs and give them a home. But with moving stories like Hachiko, the dog who waited for his owner to arrive at the train station every day even after nine years since his owner died, shows that it’s not just the food they are after. With this kind of loyalty, it can really be said that Hachiko loved his owner. But there was no scientific explanation back then that dogs can love.
Thankfully, in 2005, ScienceDirect conducted an experiment on dog behaviour that led to the controversial reason: dogs may love you back. They let the dogs smell their owner’s scent, a stranger’s scent and the smell of food. Brain scans of the dogs were taken as they encountered each scent. The research hypothesised that because the smell is so crucial to dogs—not to mention it is way, way better than humans’ sense of smell—it would be the best method to comprehend how canine brains think. Here’s what they found: dogs did not just react more strongly to the smell of their owners; the part of the brain linked to positive emotions also lit up when they smelled it! So yes, your loyal dog knows you and can recognise you. According to food pet brand Purina, these similar patterns in people would usually be associated with love.
Bottomline
Understanding your dog is a vital part of cultivating your relationship with your furry friend. While fully getting what they are exactly thinking at any given time is not possible, knowing these theories and concepts can help you foster a harmonious life for your family and pets.
Need professional help training your dog? Book a 1-on-1 training session with Jay by clicking here. Stay updated on the latest blog posts and news articles by subscribing to our newsletter. Share your thoughts and engage in a conversation with other members by joining our community!
Recent Comments