Olfaction and Human Social Behavior: Effects of Heasant Scents on Physical Aggression

Forty-eight male undergraduates participated in an experiment designed to investigate the effects of pleasant scents on physical aggression. Subjects were first angered or not angered by a male or female confederate, and then provided with an opportunity to aggress against this person. One third aggressed in the presence of a very pleasant scent (perfume), a second third aggressed in the presence of a mildly pleasant scent (pine-scented aerosol). The remaining subjects aggressed in the absence of any pleasant aroma. Results indicated that when the victim was male, aggression was enhanced by the presence of perfume if subjects had been angered, but reduced by this scent if they had not been provoked. In contrast, when the victim was female, aggression was enhanced by the presence of perfume regardless of whether subjects had previously been angered. The pine-scented aerosol failed to exert any significant effects upon subjects' behavior. These findings were interpreted as consistent with the suggestion that the impact of pleasant scents on social behavior may stem from several different mediating mechanisms, including heightened arousal and shifts in social perception.