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Introduction. Approximately 400,000 children in the U.S. seek medical attention for dog bites annually (CDC, 2008). A dozen die. Inhibitory control, the capacity to plan and suppress inappropriate approach responses under instruction or in novel situations (Rothbart et al., 2001), is linked to broad child injury risk (Schwebel & Plumert, 1999); but is poorly understood as a risk factor for pediatric dog bites.
Method. 27 children (mean 4.70 years; SD = 0.83; 56% male) from Birmingham, USA and Guelph, Canada were recruited. All lived in homes with 1-3 pet dogs. [Note: Study is ongoing; N = 200 expected by September].  Parents completed the inhibitory control scale of the Children's Behavior Questionnaire (Rothbart et al., 1994) and items concerning childrens' history with dogs.
Results. Inhibitory control correlated to parent-report of children's history of dog bites, r = .47, suggesting more inhibited children were less likely to have experienced previous dog bites. Inhibitory control also related to parent report of children's negative experiences with a dog that resulted in crying, r = .52, with more inhibited children experiencing fewer negative incidents.  Surprisingly, inhibitory control was unrelated to parent report of children playing rough with dogs. Age and gender also were unrelated to dog history.
Implications. Current dog bite prevention strategies focus on dog control and owner education (e.g., leash laws, animal training). These strategies help, but identification of child-specific risk factors, such as inhibitory control, could aid development of other dog-bite prevention programs.

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