Emotions can be described as relatively intense, rapid, affective responses to external stimuli causing the body to react. It is assumed that auditory stimuli can elicit emotional reactions in dogs. There are some indicators useful for the identification of the arousal levels, including some physiological and behavioural parameters, but these remain often ambiguous for the identification of the valence of emotions. In view of its applications, most research on the topic dealt with negative emotions – such as fear, anxiety, and distress – evoked by loud noises as fireworks, gunshots, thunderstorms. Much less has been done on the characterization of positive emotional reactions to sounds. One constrain that has hindered research in this area, is that there are no accepted methods for the identification of dogs’ reactions to sounds with positive emotional valence. This thesis deals with the process of standardizing a procedure that would reliably allow to observe and characterise dogs’ reactions to sounds with presumptive positive emotional valence. In view of the lack of methods, several different approaches has been attempted to this aim, evaluating their ability to provide a reliable, unambiguous and objective way of assessing dogs’ reactions to the sounds. The first was the Openfield Test, a procedure in which the dog was free to express any behaviour in an unconstrained environment with presentation of different acoustical stimuli. The results showed no relevant behaviours indicators of a positive emotional state (no significant behavioural difference between reactions to positive vs. neutral auditory stimuli). In the attempt to circumvent the problems that arose with the first procedure, a second test was devised: the Maze Test. It was focused on the identification of a more objective information: the dog preference towards a sound. The test required the dog to choose between two arms (one silent and the other producing the sound) to reach a bowl with food. It was used to validate the appropriateness and the valence of the auditory stimuli used to evoke emotional reactions. The results showed no significant preference towards any arm by the dogs, rather a random choice or a strong bias possibly due to a learning process related to the movement pattern required to complete the test. The last procedure attempted was the Two Side Room Test, in which the dog was not forced to perform any predefined task. A room was divided in two halves and only one side was producing the sound when the dog entered it. The lack of predetermined spatial paths, and the absence of food, allowed to isolate effects of preference, without the interference of spatial and motivational biases. The percentage of time spent by each dog in each side has been calculated and used to identify through this new parameter the preference of the dog for a sound rather than silence. The statistical analysis of the data collected showed a significant result, meaning that this method is reliable when highlighting dog preference. Implementing this procedure with behavioural analysis through Observer it could be possible to identify common behavioural patterns indicators of reaction to positive auditory stimuli. This test has never been used to investigate emotions related to positive auditory stimuli, and it is a promising procedure that could be farther adapted for future research.

Emotions can be described as relatively intense, rapid, affective responses to external stimuli causing the body to react. It is assumed that auditory stimuli can elicit emotional reactions in dogs. There are some indicators useful for the identification of the arousal levels, including some physiological and behavioural parameters, but these remain often ambiguous for the identification of the valence of emotions. In view of its applications, most research on the topic dealt with negative emotions – such as fear, anxiety, and distress – evoked by loud noises as fireworks, gunshots, thunderstorms. Much less has been done on the characterization of positive emotional reactions to sounds. One constrain that has hindered research in this area, is that there are no accepted methods for the identification of dogs’ reactions to sounds with positive emotional valence. This thesis deals with the process of standardizing a procedure that would reliably allow to observe and characterise dogs’ reactions to sounds with presumptive positive emotional valence. In view of the lack of methods, several different approaches has been attempted to this aim, evaluating their ability to provide a reliable, unambiguous and objective way of assessing dogs’ reactions to the sounds. The first was the Openfield Test, a procedure in which the dog was free to express any behaviour in an unconstrained environment with presentation of different acoustical stimuli. The results showed no relevant behaviours indicators of a positive emotional state (no significant behavioural difference between reactions to positive vs. neutral auditory stimuli). In the attempt to circumvent the problems that arose with the first procedure, a second test was devised: the Maze Test. It was focused on the identification of a more objective information: the dog preference towards a sound. The test required the dog to choose between two arms (one silent and the other producing the sound) to reach a bowl with food. It was used to validate the appropriateness and the valence of the auditory stimuli used to evoke emotional reactions. The results showed no significant preference towards any arm by the dogs, rather a random choice or a strong bias possibly due to a learning process related to the movement pattern required to complete the test. The last procedure attempted was the Two Side Room Test, in which the dog was not forced to perform any predefined task. A room was divided in two halves and only one side was producing the sound when the dog entered it. The lack of predetermined spatial paths, and the absence of food, allowed to isolate effects of preference, without the interference of spatial and motivational biases. The percentage of time spent by each dog in each side has been calculated and used to identify through this new parameter the preference of the dog for a sound rather than silence. The statistical analysis of the data collected showed a significant result, meaning that this method is reliable when highlighting dog preference. Implementing this procedure with behavioural analysis through Observer it could be possible to identify common behavioural patterns indicators of reaction to positive auditory stimuli. This test has never been used to investigate emotions related to positive auditory stimuli, and it is a promising procedure that could be farther adapted for future research.

DEVELOPMENT OF A METHODOLOGY FOR THE ASSESSMENT OF DOG REACTIONS TO AUDITORY STIMULI WITH POSITIVE VALENCE

TANGHETTI, ELISA
2021/2022

Abstract

Emotions can be described as relatively intense, rapid, affective responses to external stimuli causing the body to react. It is assumed that auditory stimuli can elicit emotional reactions in dogs. There are some indicators useful for the identification of the arousal levels, including some physiological and behavioural parameters, but these remain often ambiguous for the identification of the valence of emotions. In view of its applications, most research on the topic dealt with negative emotions – such as fear, anxiety, and distress – evoked by loud noises as fireworks, gunshots, thunderstorms. Much less has been done on the characterization of positive emotional reactions to sounds. One constrain that has hindered research in this area, is that there are no accepted methods for the identification of dogs’ reactions to sounds with positive emotional valence. This thesis deals with the process of standardizing a procedure that would reliably allow to observe and characterise dogs’ reactions to sounds with presumptive positive emotional valence. In view of the lack of methods, several different approaches has been attempted to this aim, evaluating their ability to provide a reliable, unambiguous and objective way of assessing dogs’ reactions to the sounds. The first was the Openfield Test, a procedure in which the dog was free to express any behaviour in an unconstrained environment with presentation of different acoustical stimuli. The results showed no relevant behaviours indicators of a positive emotional state (no significant behavioural difference between reactions to positive vs. neutral auditory stimuli). In the attempt to circumvent the problems that arose with the first procedure, a second test was devised: the Maze Test. It was focused on the identification of a more objective information: the dog preference towards a sound. The test required the dog to choose between two arms (one silent and the other producing the sound) to reach a bowl with food. It was used to validate the appropriateness and the valence of the auditory stimuli used to evoke emotional reactions. The results showed no significant preference towards any arm by the dogs, rather a random choice or a strong bias possibly due to a learning process related to the movement pattern required to complete the test. The last procedure attempted was the Two Side Room Test, in which the dog was not forced to perform any predefined task. A room was divided in two halves and only one side was producing the sound when the dog entered it. The lack of predetermined spatial paths, and the absence of food, allowed to isolate effects of preference, without the interference of spatial and motivational biases. The percentage of time spent by each dog in each side has been calculated and used to identify through this new parameter the preference of the dog for a sound rather than silence. The statistical analysis of the data collected showed a significant result, meaning that this method is reliable when highlighting dog preference. Implementing this procedure with behavioural analysis through Observer it could be possible to identify common behavioural patterns indicators of reaction to positive auditory stimuli. This test has never been used to investigate emotions related to positive auditory stimuli, and it is a promising procedure that could be farther adapted for future research.
2021
Development of a methodology for the assessment of dog reactions to auditory stimuli with positive valence
Emotions can be described as relatively intense, rapid, affective responses to external stimuli causing the body to react. It is assumed that auditory stimuli can elicit emotional reactions in dogs. There are some indicators useful for the identification of the arousal levels, including some physiological and behavioural parameters, but these remain often ambiguous for the identification of the valence of emotions. In view of its applications, most research on the topic dealt with negative emotions – such as fear, anxiety, and distress – evoked by loud noises as fireworks, gunshots, thunderstorms. Much less has been done on the characterization of positive emotional reactions to sounds. One constrain that has hindered research in this area, is that there are no accepted methods for the identification of dogs’ reactions to sounds with positive emotional valence. This thesis deals with the process of standardizing a procedure that would reliably allow to observe and characterise dogs’ reactions to sounds with presumptive positive emotional valence. In view of the lack of methods, several different approaches has been attempted to this aim, evaluating their ability to provide a reliable, unambiguous and objective way of assessing dogs’ reactions to the sounds. The first was the Openfield Test, a procedure in which the dog was free to express any behaviour in an unconstrained environment with presentation of different acoustical stimuli. The results showed no relevant behaviours indicators of a positive emotional state (no significant behavioural difference between reactions to positive vs. neutral auditory stimuli). In the attempt to circumvent the problems that arose with the first procedure, a second test was devised: the Maze Test. It was focused on the identification of a more objective information: the dog preference towards a sound. The test required the dog to choose between two arms (one silent and the other producing the sound) to reach a bowl with food. It was used to validate the appropriateness and the valence of the auditory stimuli used to evoke emotional reactions. The results showed no significant preference towards any arm by the dogs, rather a random choice or a strong bias possibly due to a learning process related to the movement pattern required to complete the test. The last procedure attempted was the Two Side Room Test, in which the dog was not forced to perform any predefined task. A room was divided in two halves and only one side was producing the sound when the dog entered it. The lack of predetermined spatial paths, and the absence of food, allowed to isolate effects of preference, without the interference of spatial and motivational biases. The percentage of time spent by each dog in each side has been calculated and used to identify through this new parameter the preference of the dog for a sound rather than silence. The statistical analysis of the data collected showed a significant result, meaning that this method is reliable when highlighting dog preference. Implementing this procedure with behavioural analysis through Observer it could be possible to identify common behavioural patterns indicators of reaction to positive auditory stimuli. This test has never been used to investigate emotions related to positive auditory stimuli, and it is a promising procedure that could be farther adapted for future research.
Dog behaviour
Auditory stimuli
Methodology
Ethological research
Emotional state
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12608/37561