A
anthropomorphism – the attribution of human form, personality or emotions to what is not human.
B
behavior – the manifestation of a dog’s temperament, involving action and response to stimulation.
C
classical conditioning – pairing an unconditioned stimulus with a neutral stimulus until a neutral stimulus evokes the same response as the unconditioned stimulus.
cognitive dissonance – a condition of conflict resulting from inconsistency between ones beliefs and ones actions.
condition – the overall well-being and state of health, physical as well as mental health.
countering – any type of assertive behavior when a dog feels adversity (stress) during protection training. (Re-gripping, Growling, Shoving, Shaking)
D
defense (active) – forward aggression.
defense (passive) – backwards avoidance.
drive – an exaggerated instinctual response to certain stimuli and situations.
E
emotional sensitivity – a dog’s response to his handlers actions.
energy level – a dog’s desire to be active. Activity can be brought forth in drive (positive) or nervousness (negative).
escape training – operant conditioning is the application of pressure and/or pain to make a correct response. Dog learns to make a response in order to prevent pressure.
extinction – withholding the reward when the dog makes no response or an incorrect response. Eventually the wrong response will become extinguished. Dependent on the value of the reward.
F
food drive – the desire to persist in getting food, not always related to hunger.
fight drive – the desire to initiate and persist in both physical and mental confrontation.
H
hardness – a dog’s ability to withstand negative stimulation, remain unaffected and to bounce back into drive. (Each drive has its own hardness factor for each dog. A correction in obedience requires resilience in pack, toy or food drive, which ever is being used at the time. Pressure from the helper requires resilience in fight drive. Thus the same dog may be able to withstand a certain degree of negative stimulation in prey drive, but not in fight drive).
I
imprint – a dog’s first, impression of a situation or stimulation. Foundation.
instinct – a dog’s innate response to a certain stimuli, independent of any thought process.
motivation – attracting a dog utilizing an item he desires which stimulates him into the desired response.
N
negative reinforcement – utilizing an item a dog dislikes, or causes discomfort, while he is performing a specific action.
nerve strength – a dog’s inner confidence (temperament) which creates his ability to react calmly and clearly to external stimuli.
nervousness – a dog’s unsureness and overreaction to external stimuli.
O
operant conditioning – is a type of learning that involves an increase in the probability of a response occurring as a function of reinforcement.
opposition reflex – a dog’s tendency to resist a move against physical pressure.
P
pack drive – the desire to please and work with the handler and be part of the team.
place association – the ability to first associate a stimulus or experience with a location where it happens.
play drive – the high desire for a dog to entertain himself with an object actively.
positive reinforcement – utilizing something a dog likes, or causes pleasure, while performing a specific action.
prey drive – a dog’s desire to chase with intensity anything moving (primarily away), including catching, biting and carrying.
punishment – utilizing something a dog dislikes, or causes discomfort, after he has completed a specific action.
R
reward – providing something a dog likes, or causes pleasure, after completing a specific action.
S
shaping – giving positive reinforcement for each step toward desired behavior.
stimulus generalization – The principle that when a subject has been conditioned to make a response to a stimulus, similar stimuli will also evoke that response. If the dog is conditioned to respond to the verbal stimulus of Down, similar stimuli such as drown will also cause the response.
stimulus discrimination – The stimuli or cues that a dog learns must be very specific and constant in order to minimize stimulus generalization. They don’t understand the words but know what the cue means relative to a specific response to perform.
stamina – the ability to continue activity and have a high resistance to fatigue.
successive approximation – shaping a dog’s behavior by going from simple to complex in a series of steps.
T
temperament – a dog’s mental and emotional attributes, which dictate how he perceives his environment and causes his actions and reactions.
U
unconditioned stimulus – a stimulus that naturally brings forth a particular response, food.
unconditioned response – an unlearned biological reaction evoked by a unconditioned stimulus. A dog salivating when presented with food.