This page is part of the Auxiliary section of the Beginner's Course of the
D.S. Dog Training Workshop, - an element of the Dog Science Network
How Joyful Affect Serves to Make Punishment More Effective
Research tells us that punishment is more effective if the post-punishment conditions are in sharp contrast to the pre-punishment conditions. That means that if you punish a happy dog for misbehaving and, thereby, make him unhappy, that will have a far greater effect on the animal's future behavior than would have been the case if he was already unhappy at the time you punished him for misbehaving.
The bottom line is that a dog who was happy just immediately before he was punished for misbehaving, will always be more profoundly swayed by the experience than will a dog who was unhappy just immediately before he misbehaved and paid the price, which is just one more reason why it is easier to train a dog who is habitually joyful.