Please cite this article in press as: Gergely, A., et al., Dogs are able to generalise directional acoustic signals to different contexts and tasks. Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. (2014), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.applanim.2014.04.005 ARTICLE IN PRESS G Model APPLAN-3891; No. of Pages 8 Applied Animal Behaviour Science xxx (2014) xxx–xxx Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Applied Animal Behaviour Science jou rn al hom epage : w ww.elsevier.com/locate/applanim Dogs are able to generalise directional acoustic signals to different contexts and tasks Anna Gergely a,∗ , József Topál b , Antal Dóka a , Ádám Miklósi a,c a Department of Ethology, Eötvös Loránd University, Pázmány P. s. 1/c, 1117 Budapest, Hungary b Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience and Psychology, Hung. Acad. Sci., Victor Hugo u. 18-22, 1132 Budapest, Hungary c MTA-ELTE Comparative Ethology Research Group, Pázmány P. s. 1/c, 1117 Budapest, Hungary a r t i c l e i n f o Article history: Accepted 15 April 2014 Available online xxx Keywords: Dog Generalisation Spatial navigation Dog training a b s t r a c t Previous studies suggested that dogs are able to use both egocentric and allocentric cues spontaneously in specified spatial tasks. They can also learn rapidly ‘go-left/go-right’ tasks based on stimulus location but relying on stimulus quality. At the same time, relatively little research has looked at the possibility of whether dogs are able to solve a spatial prob- lem based on previously trained signals in novel situations. In the present study we have examined whether dogs are able to rely on quality differences in sound stimuli for direc- tional behaviour and to generalise this rule in different field conditions. First, we trained 16 adult pet dogs in the lab to go left and right based upon qualitatively different sound signals. After having reached the criterion, subjects participated in five field test sessions that included several novel targets (balls/trees/humans) at different distances (7–18 m) and angular deviations (36 ◦ –87 ◦ ). We wanted to see whether these aspects of the novel context affect the dogs’ performance. After having reached the criterion, subjects participated in five field test sessions that included several novel targets at different distances and angular deviations. The test sessions were followed by a control session in the laboratory in order to exclude the Clever Hans effect. We found that dogs chose the target object that matched the sound signal significantly above the chance level in each test condition and also in the Clever Hans control. Their performance was not affected by different targets and distances, but decreased as a function of angular deviation. These results suggest that dogs are able to learn the ‘go left/go right’ task based on qualitatively different sounds and utilise this rule in novel situations. The angular deviation in choosing the correct target direction proved to be an important factor in the dogs’ performance in a novel context. © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. ∗ Corresponding author at: Department of Ethology, Eötvös University, Pázmány P. s. 1/c, H-1117 Budapest, Hungary. Tel.: +36 1 381 2179; fax: +36 1 381 2180. E-mail addresses: anna.gergely66@gmail.com (A. Gergely), topaljozsef@gmail.com (J. Topál), dokaantal@gmail.com (A. Dóka), amiklosi62@gmail.com (Á. Miklósi). 1. Introduction Dogs (Canis familiaris) are descendants of territorial predators, wolves (Canis lupus), and it is expected that they are able to learn and use the location of objects in space (Gallistel, 1990). Two different types of basic mechanisms are used for spatial navigation. The egocentric orientation relies on one’s own body position in space, while in the case of allocentric orientation the animal uses the position of an external cue (beacon or landmark) as a reference (Pohl, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.applanim.2014.04.005 0168-1591/© 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.