Dog personality depends on breed (and age and social environment)
Are all golden retrievers friendly and trainable? Well, the title gives away the answer to the age-old discussion about whether a dog's breed predicts its personality. A new scientific study found that dog breed was important but age and early environment were as well.
How the study was conducted:
The researchers analyzed personality traits including insecurity, training focus, aggressiveness/dominance, energy, human sociability, dog sociability, and perseverance (aka stubbornness) in over 11,000 dogs in 52 breeds or breed groups.
The main results of the study:
- Breed: The most important variable related to dog personality differences.
- Age: Young dogs had the highest energy level (as any puppy owner can attest) and more insecurity. Eight-10 year old dogs had the highest level of aggressiveness, and older dogs had more training focus.
- Sex and sterilization status: Female dogs were more insecure and focused on training than male dogs, whereas males were more aggressive/dominant, dog sociable, and energetic. Neutered dogs were more insecure and less focused on training than intact dogs.
- Puppyhood socialization was the most important environmental variable. Poorly socialized dogs were more likely to be insecure and show more aggressiveness/dominance. They also had less training focus, dog sociability, and human sociability than well-socialized dogs.
A main finding of the study is that while the breed of the dog was the most important factor related to personality, there was a broad range of personalities across individuals in each breed. Thus, personality may be related to the genetic background of the dog - but life experiences also play an important role.
Want to know more? Check out the publication and related news item:
Breed, age, and social environment are associated with personality traits in dogs, published in iScience 2023.
Breed Has A Big Influence On Dog Personality, But It's Not A Predictor by Rachel Funnell for IFLS, May 2023.
