Humans struggle to identify aggression in dogs, other humans

Researchers showed participants videos of human, dog, and macaque pairs to determine how well humans assess social interactions. Humans are generally good at assessing social situations in dogs, but underestimate aggression. Photo from Katrin B. on Pixabay - As a species, humans are constantly interpreting signals to assess social situations and make predictions about what could happen next. Being able to tell if someone else, whether human or animal, is happy with us, about to get aggressive, or even paying attention, can have major evolutionary advantages. Now, a new study led by the DogStudies research group at the Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology, reveals that while humans are better than chance at assessing interactions between humans, dogs, and monkeys, we struggle to predict aggressive behaviors in both dogs and humans. In the study, published in PLOS ONE the DogStudies research group at the Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology, together with colleagues from Friedrich Schiller University of Jena, the Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin and the University of Leipzig used videos to determine how well people can judge social interactions. Researchers showed 92 participants 27 video clips, each showing a non-verbal interaction between a pair of human children, a pair of dogs, or a pair of macaques.