I readily concede that if there are several dogs living together, the situation is different. But most dogs don't live with other dogs, and I understood that this particular case concerned a lone dog living with people.
One of the most striking examples of one dog / one man relationshps I recall is from my Army days back in 1971. We had 3 Polish men to guard our armoury near Farnborough. Each man had his own "war dog", and these were huge, ferocious animals that could kill a man. Funny then, how the dog handlers rolled about and frolicked with their dogs, and how affectionate the relationship was. Nobody was pretending to be a wolf, and if they did, they would very likely have been seriously hurt by the dog.
No, this special relationship with single dogs does not build upon fear or dominance. There has to be playful rivalry and gentle discipline, but above all, mutual trust and affection. Once you have that, the dog will not want to join a pack.