Honors College Thesis
 

Attachment as a Significant Predictor of Problem-Solving Persistence in Pet and Working Dogs

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https://ir.library.oregonstate.edu/concern/honors_college_theses/c247f077r

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  • It has been demonstrated that dogs form attachment bonds to their owners and that these attachments can be classified and described in ways that are analogous to attachments found between human infants and their mothers. While a secure attachment to a parent has been shown to improve problem-solving abilities in human children, only one study has been used to show similar results from the secure base effect in canine problem-solving. Further, it is not well understood how the security of attachment in dogs, both working and pet, impacts their problem-solving persistence and success. This thesis compared the independent persistence and success of four attachment-training populations of dogs (secure pet, insecure pet, secure working, and insecure working) on a solvable task in the presence of an owner. Results showed that securely attached dogs were more persistent at the task than insecurely attached dogs, with securely attached working dogs being the most persistent overall. These findings suggest that attachment security is a significant predictor of problem-solving persistence, even over training history. However, further research is required to further elucidate the effect of insecure attachment, training history, individual and owner differences on dog problem solving.
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  • Pending Publication
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  • 2021-05-25 to 2023-06-25

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