Some dogs can find the payoff-dominant outcome in the Assurance game

Mayte Martínez; Selina Schöndorfer; Lauren M Robinson; Sarah F Brosnan; Friederike Range

doi:10.1016/j.isci.2023.108698

Some dogs can find the payoff-dominant outcome in the Assurance game

iScience. 2023 Dec 9;27(1):108698. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.108698. eCollection 2024 Jan 19.

Authors

Mayte Martínez^{1

2}, Selina Schöndorfer³, Lauren M Robinson⁴, Sarah F Brosnan^{2

5}, Friederike Range¹

Affiliations

¹ Domestication Lab, Konrad Lorenz Institute of Ethology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna 1160, Austria.
² Language Research Center, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30303, USA.
³ Department of Cognitive Biology, University of Vienna, Vienna 1030, Austria.
⁴ Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48108, USA.
⁵ Departments of Psychology and Philosophy, Neuroscience Institute, Center for Behavioral Neuroscience, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30303, USA.

Abstract

Studies on coordination often present animals with the choice of either cooperating or remaining inactive; however, in nature, animals may also choose to act alone. This can be modeled with the Assurance game, an economic game that has recently been used to explore decision-making in primates. We investigated whether dyads of pet dogs coordinate in the Assurance game. Pairs were presented with two alternatives: they could individually solve an apparatus baited with a low-value reward (Hare) or they could coordinate to solve a cooperative apparatus baited with a high-value reward for each dog (Stag). All individuals matched their partner's choices, but after controlling for side bias, only four out of eleven dyads consistently coordinated on the payoff-dominant strategy (Stag-Stag). Thus, some dogs are capable of finding coordinated outcomes, as do primates, at least when their partner's actions are visible and coordination results in the biggest payoff for both individuals.

Keywords: Biological sciences; Canine behavior; Cognitive neuroscience; Zoology.