Investigating the Solidity Principle in Domestic Dogs (Canis lupus familiaris)

• Main Author: Espinosa, Julia
• Other Authors: Buchsbaum, Daphna, Moscovitch, Morris, Psychology
• Format: Thesis
• Language: unknown
• Published: 2019
• Subjects: Canine Cognition; Comparative Cognition; Continuity; Domestic Dog; Physical Reasoning; Solidity; 0633; Canis lupus
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1807/95628

The solidity principle (SP) dictates that solid objects cannot pass through each other or exist in the same location. Investigations in human and nonhuman primates have demonstrated that they understand SP, and suggested it may be central to navigating the environment. Research in canines has been inconclusive. Controlling for confounds in previous studies, I tested domestic dogs’ understanding of SP in a between-subjects design using an apparatus consisting of a removable shelf with 2 vertically aligned search locations. Dogs (N=48) watched a treat fall into the apparatus and come to rest on either the shelf or the bottom surface. Three different experiments were designed to partially or fully obscure both of the search locations. In partially occluded experiments dogs showed near ceiling search accuracy, suggesting a basic understanding of SP. Dogs in the fully-occluded experiment performed at chance. This study sheds light on physical concept understanding in non-primate social animals. M.A. 2019-07-10 00:00:00