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Cameron EL, Follett SR, Rajcevich Schwer AS. How well can young adults and children discriminate between odors? PSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH 2024:10.1007/s00426-024-01981-6. [PMID: 38896309 DOI: 10.1007/s00426-024-01981-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/01/2024] [Accepted: 05/28/2024] [Indexed: 06/21/2024]
Abstract
It is widely believed that people can distinguish between many odors although there is limited empirical evidence. Odor discrimination tasks are employed much less often than other measures of olfaction, but, interestingly, performance is typically ~ 75% correct. This less-than-perfect performance is rarely highlighted, although it suggests that people may not be as good at discriminating odors as is commonly believed. Odor discrimination is understudied in children, and although available evidence suggests that it improves with age, children perform better when the task is simpler. In the present study, we explored odor discrimination in children and young adults with a relatively simple same-different task using common and uncommon odors. We found that children perform as well as young adults, but that overall performance was less than perfect and depended on the odors to be discriminated. We found evidence that ability to discriminate between odors improves as the difference in pleasantness of the odors increases. In a second experiment, we tested this directly by exploring whether odors that differ in pleasantness and edibility, two dimensions that appear to be important in olfactory perception, are easier to discriminate than odors that are the same on those dimensions. We found further evidence that odors that differ in pleasantness are easier to discriminate.
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Affiliation(s)
- E Leslie Cameron
- Department of Psychological Science, Carthage College, 2001 Alford Park Drive, Kenosha, WI, 53140, USA.
| | - Sierra R Follett
- Department of Psychological Science, Carthage College, 2001 Alford Park Drive, Kenosha, WI, 53140, USA
| | - Autumn S Rajcevich Schwer
- Department of Psychological Science, Carthage College, 2001 Alford Park Drive, Kenosha, WI, 53140, USA
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Patel ZM, Holbrook EH, Turner JH, Adappa ND, Albers MW, Altundag A, Appenzeller S, Costanzo RM, Croy I, Davis GE, Dehgani-Mobaraki P, Doty RL, Duffy VB, Goldstein BJ, Gudis DA, Haehner A, Higgins TS, Hopkins C, Huart C, Hummel T, Jitaroon K, Kern RC, Khanwalkar AR, Kobayashi M, Kondo K, Lane AP, Lechner M, Leopold DA, Levy JM, Marmura MJ, Mclelland L, Miwa T, Moberg PJ, Mueller CA, Nigwekar SU, O'Brien EK, Paunescu TG, Pellegrino R, Philpott C, Pinto JM, Reiter ER, Roalf DR, Rowan NR, Schlosser RJ, Schwob J, Seiden AM, Smith TL, Soler ZM, Sowerby L, Tan BK, Thamboo A, Wrobel B, Yan CH. International consensus statement on allergy and rhinology: Olfaction. Int Forum Allergy Rhinol 2022; 12:327-680. [PMID: 35373533 DOI: 10.1002/alr.22929] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2021] [Revised: 01/01/2021] [Accepted: 11/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The literature regarding clinical olfaction, olfactory loss, and olfactory dysfunction has expanded rapidly over the past two decades, with an exponential rise in the past year. There is substantial variability in the quality of this literature and a need to consolidate and critically review the evidence. It is with that aim that we have gathered experts from around the world to produce this International Consensus on Allergy and Rhinology: Olfaction (ICAR:O). METHODS Using previously described methodology, specific topics were developed relating to olfaction. Each topic was assigned a literature review, evidence-based review, or evidence-based review with recommendations format as dictated by available evidence and scope within the ICAR:O document. Following iterative reviews of each topic, the ICAR:O document was integrated and reviewed by all authors for final consensus. RESULTS The ICAR:O document reviews nearly 100 separate topics within the realm of olfaction, including diagnosis, epidemiology, disease burden, diagnosis, testing, etiology, treatment, and associated pathologies. CONCLUSION This critical review of the existing clinical olfaction literature provides much needed insight and clarity into the evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment of patients with olfactory dysfunction, while also clearly delineating gaps in our knowledge and evidence base that we should investigate further.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zara M Patel
- Otolaryngology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, USA
| | - Eric H Holbrook
- Otolaryngology, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Justin H Turner
- Otolaryngology, Vanderbilt School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Nithin D Adappa
- Otolaryngology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Mark W Albers
- Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Aytug Altundag
- Otolaryngology, Biruni University School of Medicine, İstanbul, Turkey
| | - Simone Appenzeller
- Rheumatology, School of Medical Sciences, University of Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Richard M Costanzo
- Physiology and Biophysics and Otolaryngology, Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, Richmond, Virginia, USA
| | - Ilona Croy
- Psychology and Psychosomatic Medicine, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Greg E Davis
- Otolaryngology, Proliance Surgeons, Seattle and Puyallup, Washington, USA
| | - Puya Dehgani-Mobaraki
- Associazione Naso Sano, Umbria Regional Registry of Volunteer Activities, Corciano, Italy
| | - Richard L Doty
- Smell and Taste Center, Otolaryngology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Valerie B Duffy
- Allied Health Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut, USA
| | | | - David A Gudis
- Otolaryngology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, USA
| | - Antje Haehner
- Smell and Taste, Otolaryngology, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Thomas S Higgins
- Otolaryngology, University of Louisville School of Medicine, Louisville, Kentucky, USA
| | - Claire Hopkins
- Otolaryngology, Guy's and St. Thomas' Hospitals, London Bridge Hospital, London, UK
| | - Caroline Huart
- Otorhinolaryngology, Cliniques universitaires Saint-Luc, Institute of Neuroscience, Université catholgique de Louvain, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Thomas Hummel
- Smell and Taste, Otolaryngology, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | | | - Robert C Kern
- Otolaryngology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Ashoke R Khanwalkar
- Otolaryngology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, USA
| | - Masayoshi Kobayashi
- Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Mie University Graduate School of Medicine, Mie, Japan
| | - Kenji Kondo
- Otolaryngology, Graduate School of Medicine, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Andrew P Lane
- Otolaryngology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Matt Lechner
- Otolaryngology, Barts Health and University College London, London, UK
| | - Donald A Leopold
- Otolaryngology, University of Vermont Medical Center, Burlington, Vermont, USA
| | - Joshua M Levy
- Otolaryngology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
| | - Michael J Marmura
- Neurology Thomas Jefferson University School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Lisha Mclelland
- Otolaryngology, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham, UK
| | - Takaki Miwa
- Otolaryngology, Kanazawa Medical University, Ishikawa, Japan
| | - Paul J Moberg
- Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | | | - Sagar U Nigwekar
- Division of Nephrology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Erin K O'Brien
- Otolaryngology, Mayo Clinic Rochester, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
| | - Teodor G Paunescu
- Division of Nephrology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | | | - Carl Philpott
- Otolaryngology, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK
| | - Jayant M Pinto
- Otolaryngology, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Evan R Reiter
- Otolaryngology, Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, Richmond, Virginia, USA
| | - David R Roalf
- Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Nicholas R Rowan
- Otolaryngology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Rodney J Schlosser
- Otolaryngology, Medical University of South Carolina, Mt Pleasant, South Carolina, USA
| | - James Schwob
- Biomedical Sciences, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Allen M Seiden
- Otolaryngology, University of Cincinnati School of Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
| | - Timothy L Smith
- Otolaryngology, Oregon Health and Sciences University, Portland, Oregon, USA
| | - Zachary M Soler
- Otolaryngology, Medical University of South Carolina, Mt Pleasant, South Carolina, USA
| | - Leigh Sowerby
- Otolaryngology, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada
| | - Bruce K Tan
- Otolaryngology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Andrew Thamboo
- Otolaryngology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Bozena Wrobel
- Otolaryngology, Keck School of Medicine, USC, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Carol H Yan
- Otolaryngology, School of Medicine, UCSD, La Jolla, California, USA
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Gamsakhurdashvili D, Antov MI, Lübke KT, Pause BM, Stockhorst U. The role of olfaction and sex-hormone status in empathy-related measures. Physiol Behav 2021; 230:113289. [PMID: 33321141 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2020.113289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/01/2020] [Revised: 12/09/2020] [Accepted: 12/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Reports of a female advantage in empathy-related measures suggest a role for sex hormones, although the data are inconsistent. Studies also report similar sex differences in human olfactory perception. In rodents, olfaction is involved in detecting and integrating socially relevant information and is modulated by the brain actions of estrogens. We hypothesized that olfaction may untangle the mixed evidence on the relationship between sex hormones and empathy-related measures (cognitive and affective) in humans. To test this, we examined 60 healthy participants in three sex-hormone-status groups: free-cycling women tested in cycle phases with higher 17-β estradiol and progesterone, oral-contraceptive users (low estradiol and progesterone), and men. We assessed empathy-related measures, facial mimicry (from zygomaticus and corrugator muscle activity), and odor discrimination ability. In the empathy-related measures and facial mimicry, we did not find overall group effects or meaningful associations with salivary levels of estradiol, progesterone, or testosterone. Free-cycling women only outperformed men in the recognition of emotions from pictures of the eye region, but sex hormones were unrelated to emotion recognition performance. Oral contraceptive users showed higher scores in the affective empathy-related measure when viewing negative emotions, with no relation to hormone levels. Free-cycling women exhibited the strongest facial mimicry (viewing female, but not male protagonists), positively associated with progesterone. Finally, the groups differed in odor discrimination, with free-cycling women outperforming men. However, odor discrimination ability and empathy-related performance were not correlated. Our results support a role of sex hormones in odor perception and in empathy-related measures, to a certain extent. However, no common underlying mechanism was found.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dali Gamsakhurdashvili
- Institute of Psychology, Experimental Psychology II and Biological Psychology, University of Osnabrück, Seminarstrasse 20, D-49074 Osnabrück, Germany.
| | - Martin I Antov
- Institute of Psychology, Experimental Psychology II and Biological Psychology, University of Osnabrück, Seminarstrasse 20, D-49074 Osnabrück, Germany.
| | - Katrin T Lübke
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, D-40225 Düsseldorf, Germany.
| | - Bettina M Pause
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, D-40225 Düsseldorf, Germany.
| | - Ursula Stockhorst
- Institute of Psychology, Experimental Psychology II and Biological Psychology, University of Osnabrück, Seminarstrasse 20, D-49074 Osnabrück, Germany.
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