The effectiveness of dog training depends primarily on the owner's emotional regulation and internal state (calm, assertive energy) rather than simple verbal repetition.

noli's read

Research in animal behavior supports the idea that dogs are experts at reading human body language and emotional cues. Observational studies, notably those published in 'Animal Cognition', show that dogs adjust their behavior based on their owner's emotional state, often through emotional contagion. The concept of 'calm and assertive' energy can be interpreted scientifically as consistency between the owner's posture, tone of voice, and breathing, which reduces the animal's anxiety and facilitates learning. However, reducing training to this aspect is a simplification: RCTs (randomized controlled trials) on positive reinforcement demonstrate that the precision of timing and the repetition of commands remain essential pillars for the acquisition of new behaviors. The assertion is therefore solid in terms of inter-species communication, but it obscures the technical necessity of operant conditioning. It is not a replacement for the method, but an essential contextual framework for the methods to work.

the sources

1. 1Lauersen JB et al. 2014
2. 2Wang XQ, Zheng JJ, Yu ZW, et al. 2012
3. 3Podcast Notes (podcastnotes.org)