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Dogs may be man's best friend, but it's hard to tell if the feeling is mutual.
狗可能是人类最好的朋友，但很难说这种感觉是否是相互的。
It's tough to figure out what's going on in anyone's head, let alone a species that can't talk.
我们很难弄清楚人们的脑子里在想什么，更不用说一个不能说话的物种了。
But there are techniques researchers use to look for emotions in animals,
但是研究人员有一些技术用来寻找动物的情感，
and studies suggest that dogs do form deep emotional bonds with people.
研究表明，狗确实会与人形成深厚的情感纽带。
And their ability to do that might be why they became our best friends in the first place.
它们的这种能力可能就是为什么它们一开始就能成为我们最好的朋友。
Dogs certainly do things that seem loving,
狗确实会做一些看起来很有爱的事情，
and not just when they snuggle up to you on the couch for some extra pats.
不仅仅是在沙发上依偎着你让你多拍拍。
Research suggests that your dog has your back, for example, and will snub those who snub you.
举个例子，研究表明，你的狗有了你的支持后会冷落那些冷落你的人。
And if it seems like your pup tries to console you when you're sad, that might not be your imagination.
而且你的小狗似乎会在你难过时试着安慰你，这可能不是你的想象。
In studies, they do seem to display empathetic concern,
在研究中，它们似乎表现出了同情关怀，
like nuzzling a person when they're sobbing, or becoming anxious at the sound of an infant crying.
比如，在一个人哭泣时用鼻子爱抚他，或者在听到婴儿哭时变得焦虑。
Dogs are also able to distinguish among human emotions by smell alone
狗也能只通过嗅觉分辨人类情感，
because how we feel changes the chemicals in our sweat.
因为我们的感受改变了汗液中的化学物质。
So even if you're putting on a brave face, they probably still know you're sad.
所以即使你表现得很勇敢，它们可能仍会知道你很难过。
But none of that is love, per se.
但这些本质上都不是爱。
To find evidence for emotions, researchers have looked to see
为了找到情感证据，研究人员已经研究
if dogs exhibit the same physiological responses we do when we feel things.
当我们感受某物时，狗的生理反应是否和我们一样了。
For example, a 2015 study used fMRI, which monitors brain activity based on blood flow,
例如，2015年的一项研究使用功能磁共振成像（fMRI）监测基于血液流动的大脑活动，
to look at how 12 dogs reacted to the smell of themselves,
观察12只狗是如何对自己、
people they knew, strangers, and familiar and unfamiliar dogs.
认识之人、陌生人以及熟悉与不熟悉的狗的气味作出反应的。
The scent of people they knew activated an area of the brain that the other smells didn't:
它们认识之人的气味激活了它们的一个大脑区域，而其他气味则没有：
the caudate nucleus, the same part of the brain's reward system
这个区域叫尾巢，与人脑的奖赏系统相同，
that activates when we humans look at pictures of people we love.
后者在我们看到所爱之人的照片时，就会活跃起来。
Other lines of research have looked at oxytocin levels.
其他研究观察了催产素水平。
Oxytocin is sometimes called the 'love hormone,'
催产素有时被称为“爱荷尔蒙”，
which is a major oversimplification of how it affects your body and brain,
这是它影响你身体和大脑的主要过度简化，
but it does seem to play a big part in creating and maintaining emotional bonds.
但它似乎在创造和维持情感纽带方面发挥着重要作用。
And when you interact with people you love, like when you hold your baby, or flirt with your partner,
当你和所爱之人互动时，比如你抱着你的孩子，或者和你的伴侣调情，
the levels of oxytocin in your blood and saliva jump.
你血液和唾液中的催产素水平就会上升。
Studies have found that there's a similar rise when you play with your dog, for both you and them,
研究发现，你在和你的狗玩耍时，你们的催产素水平也会上升，
and that just gazing into each other's eyes can be enough to cause a mutual spike.
而且仅仅凝视对方的眼睛就足以引起这种共同飙升。
But that doesn't necessarily mean that your dog loves you, or that you love your dog.
但这并不意味着你的狗爱你，或者你爱你的狗。
Psychologists are quick to note that it's impossible to prove emotions with physiological tests.
心理学家很快发现，用生理测试来证明情感是不可能的。
Even with people, blood tests don't equal feelings.
即使对人来说，血液测试也不等于感觉。
You can ask if someone loves you,
你可以问别人是否爱你，
but there's no lab result that can tell you if they mean it when they say yes.
但是没有实验结果可以告诉你，他们说“是”时是否出于真心。
So a lot of our understanding of dogs' emotions comes from the same techniques used in studies on emotions in humans,
所以我们对狗狗情感的许多理解来自于我们用于人类情感研究的相同技术，
especially humans that can't convey their feelings verbally, like babies.
尤其是那些无法用语言表达情感的人类，比如婴儿。
Psychologists study infant attachment by looking for certain key behaviors:
心理学家通过寻找某些关键行为来研究婴儿依恋：
things like seeking physical closeness with their caregivers,
比如，他们寻求与看护人身体上的亲密接触，
becoming more adventurous when they're nearby, and being distressed when they're separated.
当看护人在身边时，他们会更冒险，当与看护人分开时会紧张。
And multiple studies have found that the bond between dogs and their owners
多项研究发现，狗与其主人之间的关系
is super similar to the bond between children and their caregivers.
与儿童与其看护人之间的联系非常相似。
For example, both babies and dogs have done Strange Situation Procedure tests,
比如，婴儿和狗都进行了奇怪情景程序测试（Strange Situation Procedure tests），
where you watch them while they're left in a room either alone, with a stranger,
在测试中，他们或单独、或与陌生人一起、
with their parent or owner, or with some other combination of people.
或与其父母或主人一起或与其他组合之人一起留在房间，这时你观察他们。
And while both babies and dogs seek physical closeness with their person,
虽然婴儿和狗都寻求与人的亲密身体接触，
they also tend to display more independence
但他们的看护人在场时，他们会与陌生人进行更多的探索或互动得更积极，
by exploring or reacting more positively to strangers when their caregiver is around.
倾向于表现出更多的独立性。
That's probably because their caregiver acts as a safe base of support,
这可能是因为他们的看护人充当了一个安全的支持基础，
giving them the security they need to take risks.
在他们需要冒险时给了他们安全感。
Both babies and dogs also tend to get distraught when their person leaves
婴儿和狗在人们离开时也会变得心烦意乱
and seek comfort from them when they return,
并在他们回来时寻求其安慰，
suggesting they're a kind of "safe haven" that reduces stress.
这表明他们是一种可以减压的“安全港”。
Studies like these have even revealed different attachment styles in dogs,
这样的研究甚至揭示了狗狗的不同依恋类型，
similar to what's been described for how people bond with their parents.
这与人们和其父母之间的纽带描述类似。
It makes sense that babies and dogs have similar types of bonds with those that raise them.
婴儿和狗与各自抚养人有相似的纽带类型，这是有道理的。
Dogs are a social species, too,
狗也是一个社会物种，
and when they're young, they rely entirely on whomever cares for them to survive.
当它们小的时候，完全依赖于任何关心其生存的人。
Scientists think that in humans, that reliance is part of why we form such strong social bonds.
科学家们认为，在人类中，这种依赖是我们形成强大社会纽带的原因之一。
So it wouldn't be too surprising if dogs have similar psychological pathways to reinforce their own social bonds.
因此，狗有类似的心理途径来强化自己的社会关系就不足为奇了。
And some researchers think their ability to form these bonds especially across species,
一些研究人员认为，狗狗形成这些纽带的能力，尤其是跨物种之间的关联，
is a big part of why they ended up being our companions.
是它们成为我们伙伴的重要原因
They connect with us in a way we find meaningful.
它们以一种我们觉得有意义的方式与我们联系。
So, the science does suggest that your dog is deeply attached to you.
所以，科学表明你的狗深深地依恋着你。
But attachment doesn't necessarily translate to love.
但依恋并不一定会转化为爱。
Psychologists still debate whether love can be measured,
心理学家们还在争论，如果非人类动物有感知爱的认知能力的话，
if non-human animals are cognitively capable of feeling it, or even what love really is.
它能否被衡量，或者爱到底是什么。
Science can tell you that certain chemicals spike when your dog interacts with you,
科学可以告诉你，当你的狗与你互动时，它的某些化学物质会飙升，
and show the strength of their attachment.
并显示出它们依恋的力量。
But whether that really means your dog loves you is a question science can't fully answer.
但这是否真的意味着你的狗爱你是一个问题，而且科学不能完全回答。
You'll just have to look into those big round eyes, scratch an ear, and decide for yourself.
你只需要自己看那些大大的圆眼睛，挠挠耳朵，然后自己决定。
SciShow Psych is a production of Complexly,
心理科学秀是由Complexly出品的，
which brings you over a dozen channels, like The Financial Diet.
Complexly还有十几个频道，比如The Financial Diet。
Here's Chelsea, from TFD to talk more about it.
这是切尔西，从TFD带来更多消息。
If you want to learn more about how to be a person in the world
如果你想了解更多关于人如何在世界上成功，
and make the tough parts of adulthood not so scary,
让成年的艰难岁月不那么可怕，
you should check out The Financial Diet, on of SciShow Psych's sister channels.
可以在心理科学秀的姊妹频道查看The Financial Diet。
We talk about money, everything from how to save it, to how to spend it,
我们会谈论金钱，从如何储蓄、到如何消费，
to what to do when you owe a lot of it,
到你欠很多钱的时候如何做等方方面面，
because even though you don't want to think about money,
因为即使你不想考虑钱，
life is so much better when you know how to handle it.
但生活只有在你知道如何处理它的时候才会变好。
So check out The Financial Diet at the link in the description. See you there!
所以在描述的链接中查看The Financial Diet吧，我们不见不散！
