Which Training Method Is Best?

by Kelly Ryan, CPDT

Despite what a lot of trainers will tell you, there is no ‘right’ answer to any of these questions. The right method for you and your dog depends on you and your dog. Not every method is perfect for everyone. You have to be comfortable with the methods, and your dog has to be responsive to the methods to see success.

In the abstract, all of the various training methods do work at some level. Choke chains work, shock collars work, clickers work, rewarding with treats works. The various effects they have on the handler and the dog may be different, but they all work. They all work because the principles of operant conditioning underlie each of them.

WHAT IS OPERANT CONDITIONING?

Basically, operant conditioning is a fancy set of terms defining how consequences influence behavior. Once you understand how operant conditioning works, you may be in a better position to decide for yourself which training methods are most likely to work for you and your dog.

Reinforcement and Punishment

When you reinforce a behavior, either positively or negatively, you increase the likelihood of the behavior occurring.

When you punish a behavior, either positively or negatively, you decrease the likelihood of the behavior occurring.

Positive and Negative

We tend to think of “positive” as good and “negative” as bad. In the context of operant conditioning, however, positive means applying or giving something and negative means withdrawing or withholding something. This is an important point to keep in mind in trying to understand what these types of conditioning are and how they work.

Positive Reinforcement

Positive reinforcement rewards a behavior by giving something pleasant. For example, you ask the dog to sit, the dog sits, you give him something he likes or enjoys. What you give him is not set in stone; it could be a treat, a pet, a “good boy,” or a game of fetch. If you give a dog a reward for sitting when told to, it becomes more likely he will repeat the behavior, or, sit again. If, your wife tells you how good you smell wearing that cologne, you are more likely to wear that cologne again.

The point of positive reinforcement is that you increase the likelihood a desired behavior will occur again, because the consequence of that behavior was enjoyable. Importantly, positive reinforcement is not bribery. It’s simply a term used to define a particular component of operant conditioning. Unfortunately, people who do not understand what positive reinforcement is deride it as bribery.

Other aspects of reinforcement, such as types of reinforcers and schedules, are not discussed in this article. If you are interested in more information on positive reinforcement, please contact us.

Negative Reinforcement

Negative reinforcement is sometimes referred to as “harassment training.” Negative reinforcement also increases the likelihood that a behavior will be repeated, because when the correct behavior was performed, something unpleasant was removed. One way to think of this is engaging in the correct behavior as an effort to escape or avoid the unpleasant consequence.

For example, imagine you are training your dog on a choke chain, and you put pressure on the choke and ask the dog to sit. The dog sits and you release the pressure on the choke chain. By removing the unpleasant consequence when the dog performs the desired behavior, you are increasing the likelihood the behavior will be repeated. (Another example of this in our own lives, the seat belt buzzer buzzes annoyingly until you put your seat belt on. When you put your seat belt on, it stops. You have just been negatively reinforced.)

Positive Punishment

Positive punishment decreases the likelihood that a behavior will be repeated. Again, in this context “positive” does not mean something pleasant or nice, it means that you are applying a punishment. Here, an “incorrect” response produces an unpleasant or aversive consequence.

A jerk on the collar to stop a dog from pulling is positive punishment. The dog is less likely to continue pulling, because something unpleasant happens when she pulls. If a dog is barking and gets squirted with a water bottle, the dog is less likely to bark again. If a dog tries to jump over a fence and gets zapped by a shock collar, the dog is less likely to jump over the fence again. If a leash is soaked in Tabasco sauce when the dog chews on the leash and gets a mouthful of Tabasco, it is less likely that the dog will chew the leash again. Or, if a child touches a hot stove and gets burned, the child is less likely to touch the hot stove again.

Negative Punishment

Negative punishment is also sometimes referred to as “extinction,” because it will extinguish a behavior. With negative punishment, a reward is removed or withheld.

One of the most common uses of negative punishment, with both dogs and children, is the “time-out”. The child or dog misbehaves, and attention is withdrawn. Something good, attention, has been removed as a consequence of the bad behavior. Thus, the bad behavior is less likely to occur. If you ask the dog to sit and the dog lays down, you withhold the reward.

In order for any of these conditioning methods to work, the particular consequence imposed for a behavior has to be meaningful to the particular dog you are trying to train. If you are trying to use positive reinforcement or negative punishment, you have to use something which is rewarding or enjoyable to the dog. If your dog couldn’t care less about treats, then treats aren’t rewarding. If treats aren’t rewarding, giving them won’t be reinforcing and withholding them won’t be punishing. They simply have no meaning or value to your dog. If your dog thinks fetch is stupid, then throwing the ball isn’t rewarding and withholding it won’t be punishment.

Similarly, if you are trying to use positive punishment or negative reinforcement, you have to use something that is aversive or unpleasant to the particular dog you are trying to train. If your dog thinks the water bottle is fun, then the water bottle isn’t unpleasant and won’t reduce the barking. If your dog likes the taste of Tabasco, then that taste isn’t aversive and won’t reduce the chewing on the leash.

So, how does all this help you figure out what kind of methods are right for you? Think about your dog and yourself. Will you be comfortable using negative reinforcement or positive punishment? What will be your dog’s reaction to a jerk on a choke collar or a shock from an electric collar? Some dogs are very sensitive, or soft, and harsh methods will shut them down completely. Some dogs are over-exuberant, confident bozo-heads, and the subtlety of withholding a reward may be lost on them. As stated earlier, there is simply no one right way to train every dog. Ultimately, you have to decide which methods are fair, humane and effective for you and your dog.

OUR METHODS

At 4 Paws University, our training methods focus on positive reinforcement, rather than using force or compulsion to get desired behaviors. However, because we know that training must be tailored to the particular dog and handler, we believe in keeping our “training toolbox” open. Although we are flexible in terms of operant conditioning methods, we have chosen not to utilize particular types of equipment in our training classes. This choice is based on well-established and researched learning theories and behavioral studies, as well as our hands-on experiences, all of which have convinced us that positive reinforcement is the most effective way of teaching. The choice was also based on the types of equipment and methods we are comfortable with and willing to use. Our choices have resulted in training programs which are humane, practical and effective.

Ultimately, this is how you should choose the trainer that is right for you...the one who uses methods and equipment you are comfortable with and willing to use.

CONCLUSION

Having someone come to your house to train your dog, boarding your dog at a training facility or attending classes once a week will not be effective if you don’t follow through with the training at home. If you are not comfortable with the methods and equipment used by the trainer, and are not willing to use them yourself, you will not follow through with your dog’s training and will not be successful. For you to train your dog successfully, you must implement the training yourself and be consistent.

The laws of learning, like the laws of gravity, are always in effect. We as trainers just have to learn to use them.

Additional Reading

Traditional Training Methods

Click or Jerk - Let the Dog Decide

Dog Boot Camps

Why Punishment Can Make Aggression Worse

The Dominance Myth