Previous research has shown a strong link between our sense of smell and emotion. More recently, the importance we attach to olfaction has been found to relate to our susceptibility to 'catch' the emotions of others. We explore this further by examining the relation between a newly developed measure of olfaction (social odour scale, SOS), which measures awareness of social odours, and emotional contagion susceptibility in female participants. The study therefore aimed to test the strength of this relationship and also help validate the English language version of the SOS. Female (n = 148) participants completed an online study that measured odour awareness [SOS; important of odour questionnaire, IOQ] and emotional contagion (EC). We found that the English version of the SOS yielded high reliability and supported the previous factor structure of the scale; additionally, we demonstrated a strong association between the SOS and IOQ which provides criterion validity for its usage. The study also revealed that whilst both the SOS and IOQ were positively associated with EC, the SOS was the more accurate predictor. These findings provide further validation for the use of the SOS and suggest that our subjective awareness of olfaction, especially concerning 'social odours' is an accurate predictor of emotional contagion.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11457436 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/03010066241270209 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Binge eating as an emotional response to the COVID-19 pandemic: a sequential mediation model via the impact of events and social anxiety.
J Eat Disord
December 2024
Department of Social and Developmental Psychology, University of Rome Sapienza, via dei Marsi 78, Rome, 00185, Italy.
Background: The long-lasting consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on the psychological well-being of young people have become an emerging research topic, which still raises several questions for post-pandemic interventions at the individual and community levels. This research investigated the relationship between COVID-19 pandemic life events and the occurrence of binge eating behaviors in emerging adults, hypothesizing indirect effects of the emotional impact of pandemic events and social anxiety.
Methods: Data collection was conducted in November and December 2021 in Italy, involving 286 university students aged 18 to 30 years (M = 20.
Self-other distinction and schizotypy: Affect sharing and alexithymia in the prediction of socially anxious and avoidant traits.
Personal Disord
December 2024
BSMHFT, National Centre for Mental Health, The Barberry.
Social cognition may play a central role in many schizotypal personality characteristics, such as suspiciousness, constricted affect, social anxiety, and lack of close relationships. This study investigated how factors relevant to self-other distinction (i.e.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFYawn Contagion and Modality-Matching in the Female-Bonded Society of Geladas (Theropithecus gelada).
Am J Primatol
January 2025
Unit of Ethology, Department of Biology, University of Pisa, Pisa, Paris, Italy.
Behavioral contagion is widespread in primates, with yawn contagion (YC) being a well-known example. Often associated with ingroup dynamics and synchronization, the possible functions and evolutionary pathways of YC remain subjects of active debate. Among nonhuman animals, geladas (Theropithecus gelada) are the only species known to occasionally emit a distinct vocalization while yawning.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFVisual and olfactory signals of conspecifics induce emotional contagion in mice.
Proc Biol Sci
December 2024
Department of Animal Science and Biotechnology, School of Veterinary Medicine, Azabu University, 1-17-71, Fuchinobe, Sagamihara, Kanagawa 252-5201, Japan.
Emotional contagion occurs in many animals, including rodents. To determine the social signals of emotional state-matching between individuals in mice, we conducted an empirical laboratory experiment using visual, olfactory and auditory stimuli. The Japanese wild-derived mouse strain MSM/Ms (MSM) was tested as observers, since our initial experiments indicated that MSM mice showed higher sensitivity to others' pain compared with the laboratory strain C57BL/6J (B6).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEmpathy Development in Preschoolers With/Without Hearing Loss and Its Associations with Social-Emotional Functioning.
Res Child Adolesc Psychopathol
December 2024
Unit of Developmental and Educational Psychology, Institute of Psychology, Faculty of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Empathy plays a crucial role in children's social-emotional development. There is an increasing trend in recent studies to recognize empathy as a multi-dimensional construct, consisting of three distinct hierarchical levels: emotion contagion, attention to others' feelings and prosocial behaviors (Hoffman, Motiv Emot, 14(2), 151-172, 1990). The present study is amongst the first to use a longitudinal approach to examine the development trajectories of the distinct empathic levels, based on a sample of Chinese preschoolers aged 2 to 6 years, half of the sample being deaf or hard-of-hearing (DHH).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWant AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!