- A study conducted in Hungary investigated dogs’ ability to understand human language.
- The study involved 18 dogs and used non-invasive methods to measure their brain activity.
- The results showed that dogs showed different brain patterns when shown objects that matched the words they heard.
Many dog owners believe that their pets understand and respond to commands like “sit” and “stay still,” as well as words for favorite objects. When you say, “Bring me the ball,” that’s often exactly what happens.
But science has yet to determine whether dogs and other animals really conjure images in their minds when they hear the names of objects, suggesting that they have a deeper understanding of language in the same way that humans do. I’m having a hard time doing it.
A new study conducted in Hungary has found that dogs can not only respond to commands such as “roll over,” but can also learn to associate words with specific objects. This is a relationship with language called command comprehension, which has not previously been demonstrated in dogs.
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“When we’re talking about objects, the objects are external to the dog, and the dog has to learn that the words are what the words refer to, and the words represent things that are external to it.” said Marianna Boros, a cognitive neuroscientist and co-first author of the study. It was carried out by the Department of Animal Behavior at Eötvös Lorand University in Budapest.
Electrodes are attached to the head of Rohan, a border collie, during an experiment at the Department of Animal Behavior at Eötvös Lorand University in Budapest, Hungary, on March 27, 2024. In addition to learning how to carry out commands, dogs can also learn to associate words with specific objects, a new study has found. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)
The study was peer-reviewed and published last Friday in the scientific journal Current Biology. This involved 18 dogs and a non-invasive electroencephalography procedure that uses electrodes attached to the dogs’ heads to measure brain activity and record brain waves.
Dog owners participating in the study played an audio clip in which they said the name of their dog’s toy, such as “ball” or “Frisbee,” and then showed the object to their dog. The researchers measured the dogs’ brain activity when the object in the recording matched and differed from the displayed object.
“We predicted that if dogs really understood the meaning of an object’s words, they would expect to see that object. And if their owners showed them a different object, they would respond with so-called surprise in their brains. There will be a reaction,” Boros said. “And this is exactly what we found.”
The study found different brain patterns when dogs were shown objects that matched the word than when they were not shown, and the dogs conjured up a mental image of the object based on hearing the word. It suggests that.
Lila Majali, a cognitive neuroscientist and co-first author of the study, said other animals have also been shown to understand language referentially to some extent, but they typically do not. He said he is highly trained.
In dogs, research shows that such abilities are innate and do not require special training or talent, she said.
Majali, who is also an associate professor at the University of Stavanger in Norway, added that the study “really supports the theory of language evolution that denotative understanding is not necessarily unique to humans.”
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Although the study has been praised, some experts have expressed doubts about its results. Clive Wynn, a behavioral scientist and professor of psychology at Arizona State University, said in a Facebook post that he believes the study only showed that dogs respond to stimuli, but dogs said that they don’t actually understand the meaning of certain words.
Scientists believe that the first dogs began to be domesticated by humans up to 30,000 years ago and have lived closely with us ever since.
However, it remains unclear whether dogs acquired the apparent ability to understand command language during their evolution.
Budapest resident Emese Droszlai said on Wednesday while walking her dog in a city park that she usually teaches the dog commands for certain actions.
When told about the study, she said she doesn’t think much about improving her dog’s vocabulary or teaching her the names of things.
But the study’s results could change that, she said.
