Naive like a puppy | The Indian Express

Naive like a puppy | The Indian Express

Written by Simantini Ghosh |Updated: June 27, 2019 12:22:40 am

The writer is assistant professor of psychology, Ashoka University

Naive like a puppy

It’s time humans stop expecting cats to relate to them as dogs

As for whether dogs are capable of emotional bonding, there is so much scientific evidence in its favour, that it is not a question anymore, actually. (Representational Image / AP-PTI)

The editorial, ‘Puppy eyes’ (IE, June 19) claims that dogs have evolved to manipulate human emotions, based on a finding by a research group at the University of Portsmouth. The cited study finds that there is a specialised muscle found above the eye sockets of dogs that allows them to modulate their facial expressions, and specifically assume the fabled “puppy eyed” look to which we hapless humans find ourselves jelly-legged with love and adoration. The research is a legit find, having made its way into one of the world’s foremost scientific journals with extremely wide readership. But even then the study — and the editorial — left me a bit baffled with its (almost puppy-like) naïveté.