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. 2014 Feb 13:5:110.
doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00110. eCollection 2014.

Dynamics of autonomic nervous system responses and facial expressions to odors

Wei He  1 , Sanne Boesveldt  2 , Cees de Graaf  2 , René A de Wijk  3
Affiliations

Dynamics of autonomic nervous system responses and facial expressions to odors

Wei He et al. Front Psychol. .

Abstract

Why we like or dislike certain products may be better captured by physiological and behavioral measures of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) than by conscious or classical sensory tests. Responses to pleasant and unpleasant food odors presented in varying concentrations were assessed continuously using facial expressions and responses of the ANS. Results of 26 young and healthy female participants showed that the unpleasant fish odor triggered higher heart rates and skin conductance responses, lower skin temperature, fewer neutral facial expressions and more disgusted and angry expressions (p < 0.05). Neutral facial expressions differentiated between odors within 100 ms, after the start of the odor presentation followed by expressions of disgust (180 ms), anger (500 ms), surprised (580 ms), sadness (820 ms), scared (1020 ms), and happy (1780 ms) (all p-values < 0.05). Heart rate differentiated between odors after 400 ms, whereas skin conductance responses differentiated between odors after 3920 ms. At shorter intervals (between 520 and 1000 ms and between 2690 and 3880 ms) skin temperature for fish was higher than that for orange, but became considerable lower after 5440 ms. This temporal unfolding of emotions in reactions to odors, as seen in facial expressions and physiological measurements supports sequential appraisal theories.

Keywords: ANS responses; concentration; facial expressions; heart rate; odor; skin conductance; skin temperature; valence.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Schematical representation of the experimental procedure followed during one experimental session.
Photograph 1
Photograph 1
Set-up used in this study showing the participant and the experimenter, the arm of the olfactometer for odor presentation, and the monitor used for instructions with a camera used for facial expressions.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Effects of odor and concentration on (A) skin conductance responses, (B) heart rate, (C) skin temperature, and (D) neutral facial expressions (averaged across time and bars indicate standard errors).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Effects of odor (averaged across concentrations) on (A) heart rate, (B) skin conductance, and (C) skin temperature. Absolute skin temperatures are incorrect due to a technical malfunction.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Sequential unfolding of differences in facial expressions between the unpleasant fish odor and the pleasant orange odors for seven emotional facial expressions over time following the odor presentation.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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