"You can't reinforce fear"- Patricia McConnell

An interesting article by Patricia McConnell on fear in canines on how and if indeed we reinforce our dogs' fears. 


Is it ok to comfort your pet when presented with a feared stimulus? For a long time, as dog owners and trainers we've been told that this is a bad idea. But is it?


McConnell underlines in particular the following very important points:

• "Fear is an emotion, and “reinforcement” refers to something that increases a behavior. You can’t, technically, reinforce an emotion, but you can increase the frequency of a particular behavior"
• "...motivation is key here.  If a dog is barking at visitor from fear, then having the visitor toss treats or toys does NOT reinforce the barking! It decreases it, because the emotion of fear subsides and it is the emotion of fear that drives the behavior."

For the full article follow THIS LINK

The points made in this article lead me to ask... is it ok to mark (and click) alternative desirable behaviours when presented with fearful stimuli? I've discussed this with doggie folk on several occasions and I know that there are some well-known trainers/behaviourists (renowned in their fields of work- dog-dog aggression or inter species aggression) who do not advice the use of certain reinforcers (and markers) in such contexts. The apparent issue being that "you don't know what emotional state you are clicking". Going by McConnell's points this shouldn't be a major issue, as long as the emotion that drives the behaviour (the undesirable one) is fear and not something else. Similarly she suggests (as above) that you cannot as such reinforce an emotion (or emotional state). Reinforcers serve the purpose to increase the frequencies of particular behaviours. If throwing a toy or treats at a barking dog who is afraid of visitors DOES NOT reinforce the fear, but serves to decrease the frequency of the barking behaviour and with repetition create a positive association with such situations (the emotional response changes); THEN clicking desirable alternative behaviours (rather than the original undesirable one)  "under threshold" should serve to teach the dog "coping skills", avoid frustration and confusion (you tell the dog what you DO WANT them to do rather than what not to do) and a generalized positive association with such situations (overtime, alongside gradual DS and CC work).


It's a tricky one for sure. Nevertheless I really liked the points made by McConnell in her article. 


Feel free to discuss :)