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Physicochemical features partially explain olfactory crossmodal correspondences

Ward, RJ, Wuerger, SM, Ashraf, M and Marshall, A (2023) Physicochemical features partially explain olfactory crossmodal correspondences. Scientific Reports, 13 (1). ISSN 2045-2322

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Abstract

During the olfactory perception process, our olfactory receptors are thought to recognize specific chemical features. These features may contribute towards explaining our crossmodal perception. The physicochemical features of odors can be extracted using an array of gas sensors, also known as an electronic nose. The present study investigates the role that the physicochemical features of olfactory stimuli play in explaining the nature and origin of olfactory crossmodal correspondences, which is a consistently overlooked aspect of prior work. Here, we answer the question of whether the physicochemical features of odors contribute towards explaining olfactory crossmodal correspondences and by how much. We found a similarity of 49% between the perceptual and the physicochemical spaces of our odors. All of our explored crossmodal correspondences namely, the angularity of shapes, smoothness of textures, perceived pleasantness, pitch, and colors have significant predictors for various physicochemical features, including aspects of intensity and odor quality. While it is generally recognized that olfactory perception is strongly shaped by context, experience, and learning, our findings show that a link, albeit small (6–23%), exists between olfactory crossmodal correspondences and their underlying physicochemical features.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: Emotions; Learning; Smell; Olfactory Perception; Electronic Nose; Smell; Olfactory Perception; Electronic Nose; Emotions; Learning
Subjects: B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology
Q Science > Q Science (General)
Q Science > QD Chemistry
Q Science > QH Natural history > QH301 Biology
R Medicine > RC Internal medicine > RC0321 Neuroscience. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry
Divisions: Computer Science & Mathematics
Publisher: Nature Publishing Group
SWORD Depositor: A Symplectic
Date Deposited: 17 Oct 2023 12:58
Last Modified: 17 Oct 2023 13:00
DOI or ID number: 10.1038/s41598-023-37770-1
URI: https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/21724
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