FEATURE | FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH AGGRESSION
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Table 2 Contrasts between different groups of categorical and ordinal variables in the logistic regression analysis .
From : Aggressive behaviour is affected by demographic , environmental and behavioural factors in purebred dogs
Contrast |
OR |
Lower |
|
|
95 % Cl |
Sex Male vs . female 1.72 1.54 1.93 Dogs in the family
Upper 95 % Cl
P-value
< 0.0001
Only dog vs . other dogs 1.23 1.09 1.39 0.0010 Owners dog experience First dog vs . not a first dog 1.21 1.06 1.37 0.0042 Body size
Small vs . large 1.488 1.256 1.764
< 0.0001 *
Small vs . medium 1.383 1.155 1.658 0.0041 Medium vs . large 1.075 0.902 1.282 0.5671 Fearfulness
Contrast |
OR |
Lower |
|
|
95 % Cl |
Upper 95 % Cl
High vs . low 5.181 4.525 5.917
P-value
< 0.0001 *
Moderate vs . low 1.931 1.667 2.237 0.0011 High vs . medium 2.681 2.342 3.067 0.0011 Breed groups
Lagotto Romagnolo , Chihuahua , German Shepherd Dog , and Miniature Schnauzer vs Golden Retriever , and Labrador Retriever
3.185 2.053 4.950
< 0.0001 *
1 . P-values are controlled for false discovery rate except for a priori contrasts , which were formed after the data collection , but before the analysis . A priori contrasts are marked with *. 2 . Significant P-values are bolded ( P-value < 0.05 ) 3 . OR odds ratio , Cl confidence limit , N = 9270 .
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Scientific Reports ( Sci Rep ) ISSN 2045-2322 ( online )
© 2021 Springer Nature Limited
The researchers also assessed fearfulness to see if it was associated with aggression . Fearfulness was divided into three different categories , based on how frequently the owners indicated the dog was fearful . The categories of fear were low ( never ), moderate ( 0-40 percent of the time – yes , the paper actually says 0-40 percent , though we assume they mean 1-40 percent ), and high ( greater than 40 percent of the time ). The authors had several hypotheses regarding which factors would relate to a higher incidence of aggression . Here are their hypotheses :
• Older dogs are more aggressive than younger dogs .
• Male dogs are more aggressive than female dogs .
• Small dogs are more aggressive than large dogs .
• Highly fearful dogs are more aggressive than non-fearful dogs .
• Dogs in single dog households are more aggressive than dogs living in multi-dog households .
• Dogs in rural areas are more aggressive than dogs in urban areas .
• Dogs that were weaned early are more aggressive than dogs that were weaned late .
They also made several hypotheses regarding breed that are not listed here .
The researchers defined early weaning as prior to seven weeks and late weaning as later than eight weeks . The categorization of rural or urban was based on land use statistics on the proportions of artificial surfaces , agricultural areas , and natural areas within a three-kilometer radius of the home .
The survey results replicated many of the findings of previous studies and supported the first five of the seven hypotheses . There was an increased likelihood of aggression in older dogs , male dogs , small dogs , highly and moderately fearful dogs , and dogs living as an only dog . The researchers did not find that urban / rural environment or the age of weaning had an impact on the likelihood of aggression , though .
Rough Collies , Miniature Poodles , and Miniature Schnauzers were the most likely to display aggressive behavior in the sample of dogs studied . Labs , Golden Retrievers , and Lapponian Herders had the lowest levels of aggression . It is extremely important to remember that these studies were conducted in Finland and , as such , the breed specific findings may not generalize well to other countries , or if dogs come from different breeding lines than those common in Finland .
When looking at scientific results , it ’ s important to pay attention to something called “ effect size .” The effect size indicates how large the difference is between groups . For example , a study could find that one group is more likely to show aggression toward people . However , if that group is only 2 percent more aggressive , that isn ’ t a huge difference . If they are 10 or 50 percent more likely to show aggression towards people , then that has a much bigger real-world impact . In this study , fearfulness had a large effect size . Highly fearful dogs were more than five times more likely to show aggression than nonfearful dogs . Also , moderately fearful
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