Abnormal Psychology Articles 2010
Abnormal Psychology Articles 2010
Dog intelligence is higher than you think!
Have you ever found yourself talking to your dog and got a feeling that he knew what you said? Well, it is very likely that your dog knew what you said. Research in Comparative Psychology (study of behavior and mental life of the animals) have discovered that dogs are much more complex and intelligent than people realize.
In this article I will present some important research and provide a great example that shows complex thinking and learning processes in dogs. Hopefully by the time you finish this article, you will realize that you must be careful what you say to your dog, because they know what you're saying!
A Brilliant Idea Research – Dog Psychology Tests
Traditional psychological research user tests and experiments that depend on the subject gives feedback in one form or another. Whether it's verbal or written response, the human subject provides information which in turn allows the psychologist to define complex psychological processes.
In comparative psychology, that feedback obviously not available. However, USA Today, to Stanley Coren, professor emeritus of psychology at University of British Columbia, came up with an ingenious solution to this problem – User psychological tests designed for young people who are pre-linguistic or linguistically limited. This allowed him to make some fascinating discoveries about the dog mental function.
Dogs Can Teach Human Speech and Count
Coren's studies showed that dogs are more like humans than previously thought! So far, he discovered that dogs can learn about 165 words (author's note: There is no indication this is the upper limit). Not only specific words, but also signals. Moreover dogs count up to four or five and have a basic understanding of mathematics.
Think about this Research for a moment. An 165 word vocabulary is large enough for complex communication. For a man, knowing that many words in a language that would enable us to cope themselves in a foreign country because 165 words would cover all the basic principles of food, water, directions, etc. We may be unable to perform a thorough interview with the inhabitants of the foreign country, but we certainly could communicate our basic needs and understand the answers.
Ability to count and understand arithmetic average abstract thinking. Think back to elementary school when you tried to learn the concept of counting and how it made no sense. I still remember when Johnny had two apples and Mary gave him an apple, how many apples would Johnny have? Ow, my head still hurts to think back to the second class are trying to understand This abstract concept. However, a DOG understand these things without the world, we humans have. How amazing is it?
So what is a real world example of the complex thought processes of dogs? What about a dog by means of telephone to call for help!
Dog Calls 911 to Save a Human's Life
It was reported in the news recently when a dog owned by Joe Stainaker called 911 to save his life. Mr. Stainaker have intermittent bouts of a brain injury. To help him live alone, he got a service dog name Buddy, a German shepherd who was taught to call 911 when Joe had a seizure. The telephone was placed on a speed dial key, and the dog has learned how to operate the phone.
Now think about this a moment. Dog has to make an assessment that Joe has a seizure, then go to the phone and press the correct buttons.
In September 2008, Mr. Stainaker a seizure. His dog ran to the phone and dialed the 911th After said sender dog began to whine and bark, such as communicating that something was wrong. When police arrived, was the dog barked excitedly as if to warn them that there was a problem.
Stainaker spent two days in the hospital and recovered from the seizure; saved by his dog's call for the 911th His dog has called 911 two other times when Mr. Stainaker had one seizure and ONLY when there was a seizure emergency.
If you think it is rare, Kevin Weaver's life was saved by his dog rings 911th A diabetic, Weaver's blood sugar dropped to a dangerously low level, which incapacitate a person and can be fatal. His beagle named Belle had been trained to to use his cell phone speed dial to call 911 if Weaver had a health emergency. When Weaver was suffering from low blood sugar, his dog called 911 on his cell phone and help arrived. Belle's cell phone call to 911 saved Weaver's life and the dog was the first dog to receive the VITA Wireless Samaritan Award, given to a person using a cell phone to save a life, prevent a crime or help in an emergency.
But it is not the only way Belle helps Mr. Weaver. Belle also alerts him when his blood sugar is abnormal. How dogs are able to do this are not clearly understood but Weaver says when his dog alerts him to a blood sugar problem, he immediately gets his test meter to check and he said Belle has never been wrong. The central point here is that Belle makes a decision based on facts she notes and communicate this to Mr. Weaver.
Service dogs perform complex tasks every day. It just did not dawn on most people that these dogs are thinking and reason independently, making complex decisions, there can be a function of training. Yes, they learned to fill the role, but as a person training is just one part of the process. They still have to collect data and make complex decisions based on facts. This means they have to analyze a situation and make a decision. There is more to this than simple training, it is complex intelligence processes.
Conclusion
Dogs understand people speak, they understand numbers and can perform complex tasks, tasks that require data collection, analyze data and make the right decision. They may have four legs and a coat, but they are much like humans. Do we as humans treat them with respect and care they deserve?
The next time you say something to your dog, please remember that he probably knows exactly what you say!
© Copyright 2010, Michael R. Stone
About the Author
R. Michael Stone, M.S. – Counselor, 33 years experience with subconscious communication and subconscious programming techniques.
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