Expanding Upon Intelligence

Here's your motivational comic for today!~ And hello, long time no see.

The last time we talked about intelligence, we established that humans have two types of intelligence, fluid and crystalline, which can also be applied to dogs. We also accepted that the temperament of the breed (how food-motivated the dog is) may affect the testing of his intelligence. Upon further inspection, these two theories may be combined, and we can say that dogs actually have three categories of intelligence. In addition to fluid and crystalline intelligence, which for dogs are called adaptive and instinctive intelligence, there is also work and obedience intelligence. Here are the definitions, watered down:

• Adaptive Intelligence: what the dog can learn to do by himself by interacting with his environment; may vary among individuals, even of the same breed. (Crystalline intelligence)

• Instinctive Intelligence: the work a dog was bred for; something instinctual and innate. Pretty much the same for dogs of the same breed. (Fluid intelligence)

• Work and Obedience Intelligence: what a dog is capable of when instructed by a human; school learning ability. May vary among individuals. (A type of crystalline Intelligence)

Work and obedience intelligence is basically the ability of a dog to learn words, commands and actions from his human. This is the type of intelligence you build when you teach your dog how to play dead or fist bump you, or how to sit. In my mind, this is different from instinctive intelligence because learning how to fist bump a person is not instinctual, it is something a dog learns to please his master or receive rewards. 

Following that statement, instinctive intelligence is what a dog is bred for--for example, shepherds herd, hounds track, and guard dogs watch over things. Most dog breeds have a different instinctive intelligence, but the range is really too varied to compare which one makes the breed "smarter." 

Adaptive intelligence then, is what we discussed about the Husky--independent learning through experiences and personal desires. This is very individual. 

Interestingly, these three types of intelligence are categorized by a certain Dr. Coren, a name I kept coming across in my research on canine intelligence. I guess the universe is telling me to read his books, since he is a dog trainer, expert, and professor.