Sneha Singhal, Jaypee Institute of information technology, Noida
Through the course of their long symbiotic relationship, dogs have developed a variety of skills so that they can bond with humans. Among other skills, they are skilled in comprehending human actions that they see in every “sit,” “lay down,” and “roll over.” Dogs may react to outcomes, but it is unclear whether they understand human intentions. In the theory of mind, the ability to attribute mental states to oneself and others, long considered unique to humans, is a fundamental feature of understanding one’s intentions or at least conjuring up such notions. Is it possible for dogs to differentiate between actions taken on purpose and those accidentally taken?
“Unable vs. unwilling” paradigm:
Using the “unable versus unwilling” paradigm, the researchers experimented. Test subjects are examined to see whether they react differently towards a human experimenter withholding rewards from them either intentionally (in the unwilling condition) or unintentionally (in the unable condition). Though an established paradigm in studies of the cognitive abilities of humans and animals, it had never previously been employed to investigate dogs’ cognition. Each dog was tested under three conditions in an experiment conducted with 51 dogs. For each condition, a transparent barrier separated the human test subject from the dog. A feeding hole in the barrier allowed the experimenter to feed pieces of dog food to the dog. In trying to pass the reward through the barrier, the experimenter somehow managed to drop it after “accidentally” reaching it. A blockage in the gap made it impossible for the experimenter to retrain the dog. After the barrier failed to block the dog’s path, he attempted to reward the dog again. The testing side of the barrier received all rewards.
Dr Juliane Bräuer. says that the unwilling condition is likely to provoke different reactions from the unable conditions. According to her results, dogs indeed perceive human intention in action.
Summary:
Scientists measured the frequency of waiting before the dogs approached the reward they were denied as the primary behaviour they measured. In the unwilling condition, dogs anticipate that, if the reward is not necessarily meant for them, they will wait longer before approaching it, whereas the reward is meant for them in the unable condition. The dogs that were unwilling to wait for their owners waited longer than those who were unable to, and they also held their tails less and sat or lay down more frequently — actions interpreted as appeasing behaviours.
“No matter whether a human experimenter was intentionally or unintentionally performing the actions of the dogs, their behaviour would differ,” explained first author Britta Schünemann. Taking this into account, Hannes Rakoczy from the University of Göttingen concludes that dogs may be able to recognize humans’ intentions via their actions. Despite the skepticism they have received, the team acknowledges the need to study alternative explanations, including observations made by the experimenters and knowledge transferred from prior training sessions.
Even so, the scientists conclude their study, “the findings provide important proof of dogs having a theory of mind, at least in part, in that they can recognize the action of another.
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References: Society, M. P. (n.d.). Dogs distinguish between intentional and unintentional action. Retrieved September 5, 2021, from https://phys.org/news/2021-09-dogs-distinguish-intentional-unintentional-action.html
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