Humanity can learn much about the rules of natures from dog training. How to use incentives is one of the most obvious natural rules we can learn from dog training. Out of the different forms of incentive the rules of positive reinforcement are the most important to experiment with and master. Positive reinforcement is a special kind of incentive that goes against the natural tendencies of human nature.
Humans are giving only to a certain limit. The natural tendency of people is to be selfish. When resources are scares humans are even more selfish than when there’s abundances. It’s easy to imagine why this trait had survival value for our ancient ancestors. Those who gave away their food and other valuable resources during time of scarcity did not pass their genes to the next generation. An important exception may be sharing among close family members. On the other hand those who were too stingy did not receive needed support from the group. I believe we developed just enough altruistic behavior to give us a competitive edge for survival.
Fortunately the traits for altruistic behavior have the ability to grow as our environment chances. From small family groups of hunter gathers to humans dwelling in huge megalopolis we must evolve traits that support our changing environment. The nomadic existence of hunter gathers is all but gone. Now the trending environment is the highly competitive and over populated world of ever more complicated technology.
Again we can look to our dogs for insight into change and adaptation. While the wolf was once the enemy of humanity, now the wolf/dog is our best friend. How did the violence of the wild wolf turn into the socially acceptable best friend of humanity? Why are wild wolves on the verge of extinction while their more accepting brethren are some of the most successful species on earth?
When working with dog owners I find it interesting that the first response most people have to dog problems is “how can we punish the dog.” our default response to others threatening us or our resources is aggressive. We want to go to war and punish those who offended our dignity. It’s a rare individual who would try to reward the enemy. Why should a person give away resource and reward the one who is already threatening to deprive us of resources? The unnaturalness of giving to those we oppose, but are capable of combating, makes giving the counter intuitive response. In Chinese philosophy giving in these conditions would be considered unorthodox. Being unorthodox makes this kind of giving part of the Yin force of the yin yang. The yin is also considered the dark side. The dark side is not bad in the yin yang system of thought, it’s just unorthodox. There must be someone to give and someone to receive. These roles can be reversed in a cyclic nature. Practicing Yin while assembling yang forces is very powerful and something we must watch for. In a competitive world being the one who receives is not always the one who wins.
We can see the give and receive cycle in dog training with positive reinforcement. I give food the dog gives behavior. Or the dog may think it gives behavior and I give food. Who is giving and who is receiving?
Wishing you the best in dog training and in life
Andrew Ledford