"Gosh, My Dog is Just Like Me": Shared Neuroticism

Have you looked in a mirror recently?

Whenever I go to dog parks or talk with people who are accompanied by dogs, and often vice versa, something I do a lot, I'm asked if I know of any research that shows that humans and dogs share different personality characteristics. While I have heard numerous stories that center on this possible mirrored relationship, usually suggesting there's more of a one-way correlation from human to dog, I'm not aware of any formal studies in this area. That is, until this morning, when I learned about a research project by Iris Schöberl and her colleagues called "Psychobiological Factors Affecting Cortisol Variability in Human-Dog Dyads." This research essay is available online, and frankly, from its title, I didn't realize that the question at hand focused on how dogs mirror their humans and vice versa. The abstract for this essay, which is available online, reads:

Stress responses within dyads are modulated by interactions such as mutual emotional support and conflict. We investigated dyadic psychobiological factors influencing intra-individual cortisol variability in response to different challenging situations by testing 132 owners and their dogs in a laboratory setting. Salivary cortisol was measured and questionnaires were used to assess owner and dog personality as well as owners' social attitudes towards the dog and towards other humans. We calculated the individual coefficient of variance of cortisol (iCV = sd/mean*100) over the different test situations as a parameter representing individual variability of cortisol concentration. We hypothesized that high cortisol variability indicates efficient and adaptive coping and a balanced individual and dyadic social performance. Female owners of male dogs had lower iCV than all other owner gender-dog sex combinations (F = 14.194, p<0.001), whereas owner Agreeableness (NEO-FFI) scaled positively with owner iCV (F = 4.981, p = 0.028). Dogs of owners high in Neuroticism (NEO-FFI) and of owners who were insecure-ambivalently attached to their dogs (FERT), had low iCV (F = 4.290, p = 0.041 and F= 5.948, p = 0.016), as had dogs of owners with human-directed separation anxiety (RSQ) or dogs of owners with a strong desire of independence (RSQ) (F = 7.661, p = 0.007 and F = 9.192, p = 0.003). We suggest that both owner and dog social characteristics influence dyadic cortisol variability, with the human partner being more influential than the dog. Our results support systemic approaches (i.e. considering the social context) in science and in counselling.

I searched for some summaries of this very interesting project and read two popular pieces about this research project that nicely summarize how dogs and humans mirror each other's personality. The first essay by Naia Carlos is called "True Best Friends: Dogs, Humans Mirror Each Other's Personality," in which it's noted that a team of researchers from the University of Vienna discovered "pet owners who are pessimistic and prone to anxiety have dogs who also exhibit these qualities. By measuring their level of stress hormone cortisol, the researchers found that these dogs were also less capable of coping with threats and stressful situations."

In the second essay by Victoria Allen titled "Is your dog badly behaved? Then it may be because you're NEUROTIC: Canines mirror their owners' traits" we learn

Pet owners more prone to anxiety, who are more pessimistic, have dogs which [sic] ‘mirror’ these traits. In an experiment involving 132 owners and their pets, these dogs were less able to cope with perceived threats, as shown by changes in their level of the stress hormone cortisol. Dogs with owners who scored high for neurotisicm in a questionnaire showed less variation in their cortisol levels, a sign of failing to cope with the stressful situations. The same findings apply to dogs with separation anxiety and those whose owners are not sensitive to their needs.

The relationship is more human --> dog than dog --> human

Ms. Allen also notes that the study concludes, "In general, relaxed owners are likely to have relaxed and friendly dogs." The researchers themselves conclude, "We suggest that both owner and dog social characteristics influence dyadic cortisol variability, with the human partners being more influential than the dog."

I'm really glad I can now point to some research about shared personality traits between humans and their dogs. Frankly, when people ask me why does my dog do this or that, I often simply ask myself, "Have you looked in a mirror recently?"

Please stay tuned for more on the fascinating emotional lives of dogs and other animals with whom we share our lives.

^{Marc Bekoff’s latest books are Jasper’s Story: Saving Moon Bears (with Jill Robinson), Ignoring Nature No More: The Case for Compassionate Conservation, Why Dogs Hump and Bees Get Depressed: The Fascinating Science of Animal Intelligence, Emotions, Friendship, and Conservation, Rewilding Our Hearts: Building Pathways of Compassion and Coexistence, and The Jane Effect: Celebrating Jane Goodall (edited with Dale Peterson). The Animals’ Agenda: Freedom, Compassion, and Coexistence in the Human Age (with Jessica Pierce) will be published in April 2017 and Canine Confidential: An Insider’s Guide to the Best Lives For Dogs and Us will be published in early 2018.}