Task: Sentiment Analysis
Input (English): Understanding the emotional basis of behavior . Patricia McConnell has written a wonderful book filled with engaging stories and much practical advice for dog owners. She incorporates the latest research findings on the workings of the dog's mind in presenting her own cases from her behavior counseling service.  Her discussion of counterconditioning covers an extremely valuable concept that is not stressed (or even utilized) enough by other behaviorists and trainers. This technique is invaluable and of nearly limitless potential in alleviating many emotional distresses and disorders in dogs.      Especially pleasing to see is that in her discussion of counterconditioning and other techniques the author diverges from the decades-old approach of addressing "behavior problems" (a term that should be killed off and unceremoniously buried - it's not the animal's problem any more than if your husband had a habit of talking too loudly to your liking would you tell your friends that he had a behavior problem) by focusing on simply eliminating the behavior. This mechanistic behaviorism approach may be effective in eliminating the behavior but frequently does nothing to relieve the dog's underlying emotional distress that is causing the behavior. For example, if a dog is suffering from loneliness because he is tied up alone in a backyard and barks endlessly for human attention and companionship there are plenty of ways to eliminate the barking. But there is only one correct one: alleviate the emotional pain of loneliness. McConnell understands this and focuses on this underlying emotional distress when working with the dogs to change unwanted behavior. In light of the advances in neuroscience, comparative psychology, and brain imaging, this places McConnell on the leading edge of the changes underway in how unwanted behavior in dogs should be addressed.  The primary focus in treating behavior "problems" is to help the dog rather than the owner. McConnell gets this. Most dog behaviorists and trainers don't.     I strongly recommend this book for all dog owners who want their dogs to get the best emotional care and support in all behavior-related matters.
Output (English): POS