Empathetic people experience dogs’ expressions more strongly

Human empathy can even extend to dogs: empathetic people interpret dogs’ facial expressions more intensely. A study by the University of Helsinki and Aalto University explored how empathy and other psychological factors affect people’s assessments of the facial images of dogs and humans. The results show for the first time that human empathy, or the ability to share someone else’s feelings or experiences, also affects perceptions of the facial expressions of pet dogs.