Have you ever felt a little more heartbroken watching a dog get hurt in a movie than a person? You’re definitely not alone, and now there’s actual science behind it.
A study published in the journal Society and Animals surveyed more than 250 undergraduate students at a major university, presenting them with a fictional police report describing a brutal attack.
In the report, the victim had been struck with a baseball bat, left unconscious with a broken leg and multiple lacerations.
Researchers gave each participant the exact same report, but changed the identity of the victim, sometimes a one-year-old baby, sometimes a 30-year-old adult, sometimes a puppy, and sometimes a fully grown, six-year-old dog.
What they found was striking. Empathy levels for the puppy, the older dog, and the baby human all landed at similarly high levels, while the adult human victim ranked lowest of all.
The only time the adult dog scored below another victim was when compared directly to the infant.
According to the researchers, this wasn’t really about people caring less about grown adults in general. It came down to vulnerability.
Age, not species, was the biggest factor driving how much distress and concern people felt. The study also found that female participants showed significantly more empathy across the board than male participants did.
“Subjects did not view their dogs as animals, but rather as ‘fur babies,’ or family members alongside human children,” the researchers concluded, a finding that echoes what so many dog owners already know in their hearts.
It turns out our four legged best friends really have earned their spot as family, not just pets. Maybe that’s why so many of us would do anything to protect them.
Does this surprise you, or does it just confirm what you already feel about your dog?
Source:
1. businessinsider – “People really do love dogs more than other humans, according to a new study”
2. discovermagazine – “We May Value Our Dogs More than Our Human Relationships”
3. brill – “Are People More Disturbed by Dog or Human Suffering?”