Proving something a lot of us had suspected for a long time, scientists from Bath Spa University (UK) have proven that people are drawn to pets with similar looks.
In the study, participants were shown pictures of dog owners and asked to guess whether that person owned a labrador, poodle or staffordshire bull terrier. The participants got the answer right almost twice as often as would be expected by chance.
In the study, participants were shown pictures of dog owners and asked to guess whether that person owned a labrador, poodle or staffordshire bull terrier. The participants got the answer right almost twice as often as would be expected by chance.
In a paper presented at this year's annual conference of the British
Psychological Society's, attendees where told that while participant's
answers weren't perfect, they were correct up to 60 percent of the time.
Dr Lance Workman who presented the paper, said there might be a simple logic behind it."If you are of a robust build, you probably get a robust-built dog because you'd want to get lots of exercise," he said. "If you are slight, you might be more likely to have a poodle because you think it needs less exercise."
But he warned it was quite superficial and didn't translate to
personality. The researchers had first set out to see if dogs and their
masters had similar personalities, but questionnaires filled in by
owners of labradors, poodles and bull terriers found little difference
in their traits and habits.
Dr Lance Workman who presented the paper, said there might be a simple logic behind it."If you are of a robust build, you probably get a robust-built dog because you'd want to get lots of exercise," he said. "If you are slight, you might be more likely to have a poodle because you think it needs less exercise."
But he warned it was quite superficial and didn't translate to
personality. The researchers had first set out to see if dogs and their
masters had similar personalities, but questionnaires filled in by
owners of labradors, poodles and bull terriers found little difference
in their traits and habits.
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