Affective dimensions of odor perception: A comparison between Swiss, British, and Singaporean populations.

Abstract

Do affective responses to odors vary as a function of culture? To address this question, we developed two self-report scales in the United Kingdom (Liverpool: LEOS) and in Singapore (city of Singapore: SEOS), following the same procedure as used in the past to develop the Geneva Emotion and Odor Scale (GEOS: Chrea, Grandjean, Delplanque et al., 2009). The final scales were obtained by a three-step reduction of an initial pool of 480 affective terms, retaining only the most relevant terms to describe odor-related subjective affective states and comprised of six (GEOS) or seven affective dimensions (LEOS and SEOS). These included dimensions that were common to the three cultures (Disgust, Happiness Well-being, Sensuality Desire, and Energy), common to the two European samples (Soothing Peacefulness), and dimensions that were culture specific (Sensory Pleasure in Geneva; Nostalgia and Hunger Thirst in Liverpool; Intellectual Stimulation, Spirituality, and Negative Feelings in Singapore). A comparative approach showed that the dimensional organization of odor-related affective terms in a given culture better explained data variability for that culture than data variability for the other cultures, thus highlighting the importance of culture-specific tools in the investigation of odor-related affect.

Affective semantic space of scents. Towards a universal scale to measure self-reported odor-related feelings

“…We previously proposed (Ferdenzi et al 2011;Delplanque et al 2012) that the affective categories common to the different scales we developed and confirmed by the new scales presented in this article might be related to major functions of olfaction in humans, such as ingestion, avoidance of environmental hazards, and social communication (Stevenson 2010). Affective responses such as disgust, desire, or well-being certainly play a major role in driving subsequent behaviors related to functions of olfaction that are common to all human beings.…”

“…The present research allowed to complete the set of affective scales that was initiated a few years ago (EOS, Emotion and Odor Scales: Chrea et al 2009;Ferdenzi et al 2011) by adding new Asian and American cultures, and by then proposing a single universal scale (UniGEOS) for the future study of odor-related affective feelings in other cultures. The preliminary result that some categories of feelings are recurrent in different cultures was confirmed.…”

“…Free odor identification was collected as well, except in Geneva, the first culture that was investigated, where this measure was unfortunately omitted 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 10 because this question was not addressed at that time. More details about the procedure can be found in Chrea et al (2009) andFerdenzi et al (2011). The studies were conducted by C.…”

“…Third, the participants involved in the development of the Emotion and Odor Scales were not only students, but also (and mostly) from the general population, which confers validity of the tools outside the laboratory conditions and for a broader audience. Additionally, the scales were developed based on examinations in different countries (first in Switzerland: Chrea et al 2009; later in the United 6 Kingdom and Singapore: Ferdenzi et al 2011;see also Ferdenzi et al 2013) allowing the identification of cultural invariants and making them suitable for examination in other unstudied cultures. Fourth, the Emotion and Odor Scales have proven to be practical tools during sensory testing either in their long (less than 40 items) or short version (6 items, ScentMove® questionnaire: Porcherot et al 2010Porcherot et al , 2012Porcherot et al , 2013.…”

Sex Differences in Olfactory Behavior in Namibian and Czech Children

“…For example, laboratory exposure to odorants or purposeful olfactory training can alter olfactory function (Boulkroune et al 2007;Dalton et al 2002;Wysocki et al 1989). Outside the laboratory, cultural differences in reactions to odors may arise from the prevalence of that odor within that cultural context (Ferdenzi et al 2008b;Ferdenzi et al 2011). Researchers have noted cultural differences in reactions to food odors (Distel et al 1999;Hudson, 1999;Pangborn et al 1988;Schleidt et al 1988), in assessment of odors as pleasant or unpleasant (e.g.…”