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The Effects of Artificial Fragrances on Human Olfactory Communication

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Chemical Signals in Vertebrates 14

Abstract

Humans were once considered to be microsmatic, but recent research suggests that we can use our sense of smell to detect important, socially relevant information about conspecifics. However, much of the research conducted to-date has investigated natural, fragrance free human body odours. While this is important in order to understand the evolution of olfactory communication in humans, it fails to account for the current (and historical) widespread use of artificial fragrances. In this chapter, we outline ways in which extraneous artificial fragrances may augment the underlying body odour, or ‘odour space’ of an individual, and how this might influence the perception of socially relevant information. In doing so, we describe some specific mechanisms for the interaction between body odours and artificial fragrances (blending and masking) and we discuss some recent work which has attempted to distinguish between these mechanisms.

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Acknowledgements

JH is supported by the Czech Science Foundation grant [18-15168S].

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Psychology, Newcastle University, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NE1 7RU, UK

    Caroline Allen

  2. Department of Zoology, Charles University, Viničná 7, 128 44, Prague, Czech Republic

    Jan Havlíček

  3. Division of Psychology, University of Stirling, Stirling, FK9 4LA, UK

    S. Craig Roberts

Authors
  1. Caroline Allen
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  2. Jan Havlíček
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  3. S. Craig Roberts
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Correspondence to Caroline Allen .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, UK

    Christina D. Buesching

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Allen, C., Havlíček, J., Roberts, S.C. (2019). The Effects of Artificial Fragrances on Human Olfactory Communication. In: Buesching, C. (eds) Chemical Signals in Vertebrates 14. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-17616-7_9

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