Dog-owner emotional contagion

Emotional contagion plays an important role in social interactions and has been increasingly investigated in dog-owner relationship. This thesis' goal to review existing research on emotional contagion. A bibliographical approach was adopted, reviewing behavioral, physiological studies and emotional cues transmitted through visual, auditory, and olfactory modalities. Reviewed literature suggests that dogs are sensitive to human emotional signals and respond to them through context-dependent changes. These responses are often accompanied by physiological changes in heart rate or cotisol levels. Emotional contagion seem to appear more pronounced in negative situations causing negative emotions. Overall, the findings support the presence of emotional contagion in dog-human interactions as an automatic response rather than a form of human-like emotional understanding. This review highlights the relevance of emotional contagion for the dog welfare and human health.