Just How Socialized Is Your Dog?

Socialize your dog with as many new
situations, environments, people,
objects and animals as possible.

There’s a lot of talk about having a ‘well socialized’ dog but just what does that mean? Ask a dozen different dog owners and you’ll probably get a dozen different answers.

I find a lot of people describing their dog’s level of socialization only in terms of having relationships with other dogs. Something along the lines of, “Oh my dog is great with other dogs – my sister has two dogs and they all get along fine.” or, “My dog loves going to the dog park – he has a blast!”

It’s also quite common to hear people talk about a dog’s socialization as if it was an ability or skill that, once learned, is the equivalent of having a lifetime membership in ‘Club Socialization’.

Sorry folks… that’s not it... and not by a long shot. So what’s the answer? Let’s start by checking out these definitions from three online resources:

• Word English Dictionary: Socialization (n) : “The modification from infancy of an individual's behaviour to conform with the demands of social life.”
   
• Medical Dictionary: “Socialization - The process of learning interpersonal and interactional skills that are in conformity with the values of one’s society.”
   
• Cultural Dictionary: “Socialization - Learning customs, attitudes and values of a social group, community or culture. Socialization is most strongly enforced by family, school and peer groups and continues throughout an individual’s lifetime.”

Now I grant you these definitions were worded in relation to humans, but they apply to the socialization needs of our canine companions equally well.

So, again, what is the answer?

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What Do You Think Of When I Say "Negative Punishment"?

Why would a dog trainer whose philosophies and methods promote humane and force-free training use "Negative Punishment"?. What kinds of nasty and unpleasant thoughts come to mind when you think about that phrase? Before you get too carried away with that, are you sure about its actual definition?

There are a lot of words and phrases that can mean different things to different people, and of course there are even different ways to put emphasis on words and phrases that can make a difference in how they are interpreted. The world of dog training and behaviour is certainly not exempt from this.

To properly work in the training and the behaviour modification of any species, one needs to have an understanding of the science of learning and the science of behaviour. In science, the definition of words is (for obvious reasons) much more exacting and rigid than in common speech, so this can cause confusion and concern when certain words are used 'scientifically' by one person but interpreted 'commonly' by another person.

From my experience, the most common example of this is with the definition of the four quadrants of Operant Conditioning. Very disappointingly I have also experienced no small number of 'trainers' who use these phrases incorrectly (which tells you about the state of the dog training industry):

> Positive Reinforcement
> Negative Reinforcement
> Positive Punishment
> Negative Punishment

The biggest misunderstanding is in the use of the words Positive and Negative. In common language we associate the word 'positive' as an equivalent to words such as 'good' and 'pleasant', and we associate the word 'negative' as an equivalent of words such 'bad' and 'unpleasant'. When used in Operant Conditioning however, these two words have a different meaning but one that we're still very familiar with because we've all used in in another science called Mathematics:

> Positive = To add, or introduce.
> Negative = To remove, or take away.

Now for the final two words:

> Reinforcement = To increase the likelihood of a behaviour being repeated.
> Punishment = To decrease the likelihood of a behaviour being repeated.

So now that we've got all the definitions laid out, let's have another look at "Negative Punishment" and see just how cruel and nasty it is. By definition, Negative Punishment means to 'take away' something in order 'to decrease the likelihood of a behaviour being repeated'. An example of this?

Let's say I've got a dog whose greeting behaviour is too boisterous for my liking. If I determine that the motivation for my dog's behaviour is to get attention, and then I do in fact provide my dog with the attention she seeks, I am applying Positive Reinforcement and actually rewarding my dog for the behaviour I don't like.

Instead, what I need to do is to show my dog that her boisterous greeting behaviour will not get her the attention she is seeking, so I will not give her any attention until she settles down to the extent where I can then reward her with my attention. I will remove (remove = negative) my attention to decrease the likelihood (punishment) of the behaviour being repeated.

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