Dogs’ ability to evaluate human behavior is an emerging area of research that sheds light on their deep social connection with people. In a 2023 study published in Animals, Emily M. Richards, Z. Silver, and Laurie R. Santos investigated whether a dog’s attachment to its owner influences how it evaluates unfamiliar humans.
In the experiment, dogs observed two scenarios: one where an unfamiliar person helped their owner open a container, and another where the person refused to help. Afterward, dogs’ attachment strength was measured using a subset of the Canine Behavioral Assessment & Research Questionnaire (C-BARQ).
The findings were striking. Dogs with stronger attachment bonds to their owners showed a clear preference for the helpful person. However, attachment did not influence whether they avoided the unhelpful person. This suggests that attachment may amplify positivity biases—favoring those who assist their owners—without necessarily driving avoidance of uncooperative individuals.
These results mirror patterns observed in human social evaluation, where attachment influences how people judge social partners. The authors argue that this similarity underscores the depth of the dog–human bond and highlights attachment as a key factor in explaining previously mixed findings in canine social evaluation studies.
Overall, the research provides evidence that dogs’ attachment bonds shape their social world, influencing how they assess and respond to others’ actions toward their beloved humans.
Source: Richards, E. M., Silver, Z., & Santos, L. R. (2023). Impact of the Dog–Human Bond on Canine Social Evaluation: Attachment Predicts Preference toward Prosocial Actors. Animals, 13. Authors: Emily M. Richards, Z. Silver, Laurie R. Santos. Publication Date: August 1, 2023. Journal: Animals (MDPI).
