What do dogs gaze at? Eye-tracking study on domestication of dogs.

Research Project

Project/Area Number	16K16075
Research Category	Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
Allocation Type	Multi-year Fund
Research Field	Cognitive science
Research Institution	Kitasato University
Principal Investigator	OGURA Tadatoshi 北里大学, 獣医学部, 助教 (30723564)
Project Period (FY)	2016-04-01 – 2018-03-31
Project Status	Completed (Fiscal Year 2017)
Budget Amount *help	¥4,030,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,100,000、Indirect Cost: ¥930,000) Fiscal Year 2017: ¥1,170,000 (Direct Cost: ¥900,000、Indirect Cost: ¥270,000) Fiscal Year 2016: ¥2,860,000 (Direct Cost: ¥2,200,000、Indirect Cost: ¥660,000)
Keywords	視覚認知 / 社会認知 / イヌ / 比較認知科学 / 実験系心理学 / 応用動物 / 行動学 / 比較認知心理学 / アイトラッキング
Outline of Final Research Achievements	This study tested the eye-movement patterns which the dogs share with humans by using an eye-tracker and investigated a hypothesis in which some skills to understand humans’ intention played important roles in dogs’ domestication process. The eye-movement patterns toward pictures showing whole bodies of human, dogs, and other species and faces of human suggested that gazing to limbs and eyes was a key components to understand human intention.