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In experiments involving 70 domestic dogs, researchers found the animals looked more at rounded shapes while hearing “Bouba” and at spiky shapes while hearing “Kiki.” The results suggest dogs may connect speech sounds with visual forms, but the study does not establish that the association is universal or explain how it develops.
A study of 70 domestic dogs found that they looked more at a rounded shape when hearing the made-up word “Bouba” and at a spiky shape when hearing “Kiki.” The research, led by animal behaviorist Eleonora Biffi of the University of Parma, adds an early test of whether dogs link speech sounds with visual forms, but does not prove that the association is universal or explain why it occurs.
The researchers tested the dogs in two experiments using a room with a screen and speaker on each side. The screens displayed rounded and spiky shapes, while recordings played a person saying either “Bouba” or “Kiki.” The team recorded the dogs and later used an artificial-intelligence system to estimate which way their heads were pointing, treating head direction as an indicator of where they were looking.
The first experiment included 51 dogs with their owners present. In a second, otherwise similar experiment, 19 dogs took part while their owners wore headphones playing rock music, so they could not hear the test words. Across the study, the authors reported that dogs looked significantly more at the rounded shape during “Bouba” and looked at and explored the spiky shape during “Kiki.”
One difference between the trials was that dogs in the first experiment showed a general tendency to look at spiky shapes; that tendency was not seen in the second. The authors discuss possible explanations, including owner cues or differences in dogs’ and humans’ facial features, but the study does not determine the cause. The findings were published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.
A Possible Sound-Shape Link in Dogs
The findings matter because they suggest that dogs may respond to a relationship between the sound of a word and the appearance of a shape, rather than simply to a spoken cue in isolation. Similar sound-shape matching has been reported in people: in the familiar “Bouba/Kiki” test, participants commonly pair the rounded-sounding “Bouba” with a curved form and the sharper-sounding “Kiki” with an angular one.
If further studies support the result, it could help researchers examine how dogs process human speech and what aspects of language they can learn. However, this experiment measured where dogs directed their attention; it did not show that they understand the words’ meanings. The result is a starting point for research, not evidence that dogs interpret language in the same way people do.
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How the Bouba-Kiki Test Works
“Bouba” and “Kiki” are invented words used to test whether people associate particular speech sounds with visual shapes. The words have no fixed definitions in the experiment. Researchers compare responses to rounded and angular forms to see whether participants consistently match one sound with one shape. The source report describes the effect as appearing across people who speak or write in different languages, while the current study asks whether a similar pattern might be found in dogs.
Biffi’s team adapted the comparison for dogs by presenting the words and shapes on opposite sides of a room and tracking the animals’ head direction from video. The two experiments also offered a way to check whether owners’ reactions might affect the dogs: in the second trial, owners could not hear the words. The study was published in the same scientific journal that carried the research report.
““Dogs looked significantly more at the rounded shape while ‘Bouba’ was played, and they looked at and explored the spiky shape when ‘Kiki’ was played.””
— Eleonora Biffi and colleagues, in the study
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Limits of the Dog Experiments
The results do not settle whether dogs consistently associate “Bouba” with rounded forms and “Kiki” with spiky ones. The sample included 70 dogs across two experiments, and the first experiment produced a general preference for spiky shapes that was absent when owners wore headphones. The authors discuss possible owner cues and differences in facial features, but neither explanation is established by these trials.
The researchers used head direction as a stand-in for gaze, so the measure does not directly reveal what a dog understood or why it looked at a particular screen. The source report does not provide evidence that dogs grasped the words’ meanings, nor does it establish whether the pattern applies to dogs more broadly. Further work is needed to test the finding and explain the behavior.
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Further Tests of Canine Perception
The immediate next step is additional research testing whether the sound-shape pattern holds across more dogs and experimental conditions, including ways to account for owners’ presence and any visual preferences unrelated to the spoken words. Researchers would also need to distinguish a response to sound from recognition of a word’s meaning before drawing conclusions about dogs’ language abilities.
The study itself does not announce a follow-up date or a planned next experiment. For now, its finding is best treated as an early result: dogs in these trials directed attention differently depending on whether they heard “Bouba” or “Kiki,” while the reason for that response remains open.
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Key Questions
What did the researchers find?
In experiments with 70 dogs, researchers reported that dogs looked more at a rounded shape while hearing “Bouba” and looked at and explored a spiky shape while hearing “Kiki.”
Did the dogs understand what the words meant?
The experiment does not show that. “Bouba” and “Kiki” were made-up test words, and researchers measured dogs’ attention to shapes rather than their understanding of word meanings.
Why did some dogs look more at spiky shapes?
Dogs in the first experiment showed a general tendency to look at spiky shapes, but that tendency was not seen in the second experiment, when owners wore headphones. The authors discuss owner cues and dogs’ facial features as possible explanations; neither has been confirmed.
How did the study track what dogs looked at?
Researchers recorded the dogs on video and used an artificial-intelligence system to estimate the direction of each dog’s head. They treated head direction as an indicator of where the dog was looking.
What happens next?
More research is needed to see whether the pattern can be repeated and to determine what drives it. The study report does not specify a date or plan for a follow-up experiment.
Source: hn
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