by researchers Steve, Daniel, Anna, and Marcus

chinese version below 點擊此處閱讀中文版本

This research group chose to research this topic because our goal is to help dogs get adopted and a big reason people like dogs is because they think dogs are cute. So, when we make marketing material to invite people to go to the animal shelter to adopt a dog, we can emphasize that the dogs which have those characteristics. Hopefully, when the people see it they will be more willing to go to animal shelters to volunteer or adopt a dog. If we could identify the factors that the general public especially pays attention to when forming opinions about if a dog is cute or not, we could also give this information to animal shelters or charity organizations and suggest that they spend more time and effort tidying or helping the dog better show these characteristics.

This research was conducted through means of interviews with a research questionnaire. The subjects included 132 people, 44 men and 88 women. We interviewed people regarding attitudes about cuteness of dogs based on 7 different factors. These factors were identified by asking a number of preliminary respondents the questionnaire questions but not providing them with set responses. The answers given in this open-ended format were used to formulate the answer options in the final version of the questionnaire.

Imagine the perfect dog in your heart. Check two factors that you consider when determining the degree of cuteness of a dog and write your thoughts in the blank(Check two).

Male / Female

0-20 21-29 30-39 40-49 50-59 60-69 70+

Color ：＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ Legs ：＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ Fat or thin ：＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ Eyes ：＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ Size ：＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ Fur ：＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ Other ：＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿

Male responses to factor importance :

Female responses to factor importance:

1. The most popular factors that people mentioned were eyes and size of the dog. 2. An equal number of male respondents felt that eyes and color are important factors of cuteness. 3. The most popular response among males was the size of the dogs. 4. Very few males felt that legs or fur are important factors. 5. Very few people felt that the factor of fur was important. 6. The least popular response among females is the factor of being fat or thin.

People think that eyes and size of the dog are more important than the other options.

In the total response data, we can see that almost half of the people that voted thinks that the factor of eyes and the factor of size are the two most important factors.

Based on this result, we can suggest to charity organizations that they can post more pictures which emphasise dog’s eyes and body size or give more information or detail to the adopters about these factors. Doing this will make it easier for people to see the details of a dog that they feel are most important more easily, and assist them in making decisions about which dogs they may consider adopting.

A good number of males (14 out of 44) think that the most important detail is size when they are deciding which of the characteristics they look at to decide if a dog is cute.

Based on the answers of the male respondents, we think we have a solution to let men see the kind of dogs they like more easily. We suggest organizing pictures of dogs according to size and weight and height, then posting them to social media and other formats where people will view and potentially adopt dogs.This would help men more easily see dogs and make choices based on their preferences.

5 out of 88 (the least common answer) female respondents chose the factor of “fat or thin” as an important factor to consider. This was the least chose factor when they decide which characteristics they look at to decide if a dog is cute.

Based on the results, we can know that some females like fat dogs, some females like thin dogs. It may not matter that much to female potential dog owners, but for male potential dog owners, we may need to be more careful because a higher percentage of males expressed concern for that detail. We can use this information when making marketing material for adoptees. This may mean that usage of different marketing materials is needed when introducing dogs to potential owners. Women and men seem to think about “cuteness” differently. Marketing materials aimed at men may need to emphasize dog size, while materials aimed at women may not.

We can also give this information to charities and animal shelters. They can use this information when a female comes to visit so that they know they do not have to think too much about if a dog is fat or thin. With this information, people working at animal shelters can think about other, more influential factors, when females come to adopt dogs.

1. If we wanted to do further research, we could research what kind of eyes potential new owners like. With that information, we would be able to give advice to animal welfare staff on how fur and eyes can be styled to make dogs look more cute and attractive.

2. We can ask males what dog body size they find ideal and give the information to the staff who are trying to get dogs adopted. That would allow staff to give better suggestions to men who are potential new owners.

3. We can ask male potential owners how many kilograms they hope for the dog to be. This information would allow us to give suggestions regarding diet and exercise plans that can be used to get dogs close to the ideal weight for male potential owners. We would then also know that dogs who do not meet these weight requirements may be better suggested to female potential owners.

Based on the research, we will provide our results so we can promote adoption. If we can identify the ideal body size, animal welfare staff who are trying to get dogs adopted can make the dog fatter by making it eat more or thinner/ muscular by giving it more exercise. This may help the dog to be adopted more easily.

When posting photos on Instagram and other social media, we can put the weight of the dog in description.

Based on the results of this research, we conclude that the general public considers 7 factors when determining the cuteness of a dog. The factors’ importance generally is considered to follow the order of:

1. Size 2.Eyes 3.Color 4.Fat or thin 5.Legs and fur 6.other

People in animal shelters can use this information when picking dogs to be on their marketing materials. They can also change how fat or thin the dog is by changing their diet plan and the amount of exercise they get. How people judge what is cute might be similar to how they judge other humans or themselves.

我們選擇研究這個主題是因為我們希望幫助流浪狗能被人領養，人們喜歡狗的一個重要原因是因為他們認為狗很可愛。 所以當我們在製作宣傳材料，並邀請人們去動物收容所領養狗時，我們可以試著凸顯狗狗較為吸引人的特質。 希望人們看到後，會更願意去動物收容所做志工或領養。 如果我們能研究出大眾判斷狗可愛與否的特質，便可以將這些資訊提供給動物收容所或慈善組織，並建議它們花更多的時間和精力去提升狗的身心狀況， 讓狗更能表現出吸引人的特質。

這份研究透過問卷的方式，找出了人們認為狗可愛的特質為哪些。此研究的受訪者共計132位，分別為44名男性以及88名女性。我們先訪問了一部分的人找出大眾覺得狗可愛的特質有哪些，接著根據他們的答覆製成新的問卷，問卷裡，一共有七種特質可以讓人選擇。

以下為人們決定一隻狗可愛與否的熱門特質，這些特質是我們團隊透過訪問得到的結果。試想你/妳心中完美的狗，請勾出兩項你/妳認為在心中最符合完美的狗的兩項特質，並將感受寫在空白處。

男 / 女

0-20 21-29 30-39 40-49 50-59 60-69 70+

以下為人們判斷狗是否可愛的特徵，想像你心中完美的狗，並勾選兩項來形容你心中完美的狗並在空白中寫出你的想法（勾選兩個）

毛色 ：＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿

腿短腿長 ：＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿

胖瘦 ：＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿

眼神 ：＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿

體型大小 ：＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿

毛的長短 ：＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿

其他 ：＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿

女性問卷結果

男性問卷結果

男女總票數

1.大多數人認為，眼神和體型大小比其他選擇更為重要。 2. 大部分的男性認為眼神和毛色一樣重要 3.大多數男性認為，與其他選擇相比，體型大小是最重要的。 4.大多男性認為腿長腿短和毛的長短沒有那麼重要 展示male的表格數據 5.大多數人認為毛的長短是最不重要的選擇 6.大多數女性認為最不重要的選擇是胖瘦。

1. 大多數人認為眼神和體型比其他選項更重要。如您所見，在男女總票數的表格中，我們可以看到幾乎一半的投票者認為眼神和體型最重要。基於這個結果，我們可以告訴慈善機構，當他們在宣傳狗時，他們可以將重點放在眼神和體型。

2.很多男性在決定狗是否可愛時，最在意的特質是體型，當他們決定看哪些特徵來決定狗是否可愛時。我們詢問了一些男性他們最喜歡的狗的大小。根據大多數男性答覆，我們認為我們有一個解決方案，讓男性更容易找到他們喜歡的狗。我們建議慈善機構可以根男性對於狗體型的喜好，優先將輔合的照片，然後將它們發佈到社交媒體。

3. 9.60% 的女性在決定一隻狗是否可愛時，認為最不重要的選項是胖瘦。根據結果，我們可以知道有狗的胖瘦對他們來說沒有那麼重要。 我們可以在製作海報時利用這些信息。當我們在海報上放一隻狗時，不需要考慮牠的體型那麼多。 我們也可以將這些資訊提供給慈善機構和動物收容所。有了這些資訊，當女性來領養狗時，在動物收容所工作的人可以考慮其他更重要的問題。

1.如果我們想進一步研究，我們可以研究人們喜歡什麼樣的眼神。 有了這些信息，我們就可以向動物福利工作人員提供有關如何修剪毛皮和眼神的建議，使狗看起來更可愛和更有吸引力。 2. 我們可以詢問人們他們認為理想狗的體型，並將信息提供給試圖領養狗的工作人員。 這將使工作人員能夠為潛在的新主人提供更好的建議。 3. 我們可以詢問人們他們希望狗有多少公斤。 這些信息將使我們能夠提供有關飲食和鍛煉計劃的建議，這些建議可用於使狗接近人們的理想中狗的體重。

我們希望提供我們的研究結果來提倡領養。舉例來說，如果確定人們喜歡的狗體型是瘦和精壯，動物福利團體的工作人員可以給予較胖的狗胖更多的鍛煉，讓牠變瘦和肌肉發達。這將有助於狗被領養的機會。同時，在 Instagram 和其他社交媒體上發布照片時，也可以將狗的體重放在描述中。

根據研究的結果，我們得到了一個結論。一般大眾在判定狗是否可愛時皆會考慮下列7個特質。這些特質的重要性依據問卷的結果排序如下：

體型 眼神 顏色 胖或瘦 腿和毛皮 其他

動物收容所的工作人員在挑選狗的宣傳材料時，可以使用這些調查結果。他們還可以通過改變狗的飲食及運動量來調整狗的胖瘦程度。人在判斷狗是否可愛時所觀察的特質，可能與他們判斷自己與其他人美醜的標準相似。