Key Takeaways
- Dogs are susceptible to the bouba-kiki effect, associating 'bouba' with round shapes and 'kiki' with spiky ones.
- The study involved 51 dogs and their owners, showing a clear preference for the sound-shape association.
- Researchers suggest this effect may reflect general perceptual mechanisms rather than language-specific adaptations.
A recent study published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society has revealed that dogs, like humans, can recognize the bouba-kiki effect, a phenomenon where certain sounds are associated with specific shapes.
In the experiment, 51 adult dogs and their owners participated. The dogs were shown a rounded shape and a spiky shape on opposite sides of a panel. When the sound 'bouba' was played, 56% of the dogs lingered on the round shape, while 63% focused on the spiky shape when the sound 'kiki' was played.
To ensure the dogs were not influenced by their owners, the experiment was repeated with the owners wearing headphones playing music. The results remained consistent, with a slight bias towards the round shape for the word 'bouba'.
Eleonora Biffi, a researcher from the University of Parma, Italy, led the study. She stated, “If animals without human-like language also spontaneously associate sounds with shapes, this suggests that at least some of the mechanisms underlying sound symbolism may not be specific to language.”
The study implies that the matching of speech sounds to shapes relies on general mechanisms rather than complex linguistic representations. Biffi added, “This suggests that the bouba-kiki effect may reflect general perceptual mechanisms, rather than adaptations specifically related to dogs’ long history of cooperation and communication with humans.”
Attila Andics from Eötvös Loránd University in Hungary commented, “An exciting next question is to what extent [these links] in dogs arise through statistical learning or more hardwired expectations.”
The researchers are now collecting data on puppies and wild canids, including foxes, to see if the effect exists in other species. They also want to investigate if the effect is present in cats.
This study opens up new avenues for understanding the cognitive processes of dogs and their potential for recognizing and associating sounds with visual stimuli.
If animals without human-like language also spontaneously associate sounds with shapes, this suggests that at least some of the mechanisms underlying sound symbolism may not be specific to language.
Eleonora Biffi, University of Parma, Italy
An exciting next question is to what extent [these links] in dogs arise through statistical learning or more hardwired expectations.
Attila Andics, Eötvös Loránd University, Hungary
