A study from the Dutch University of Utrecht published in the journalPsychological Sciencereveals thathumans are able to communicate their emotional states through chemical signals.
Gün Semin and his colleagues carried out a series of experiments in which they collected the sweat produced by a series of male subjects while watching a scary movie, in some cases, and by a film that caused them a feeling of rejection and disgust, in others. During the two days leading up to the test, they were not allowed to smoke, practice excessive physical exercise, or consume scented foods or alcohol, while urging them to use non-scented personal care products. The women were then exposed to the sweat samples collected while their facial expressions and eye movements were recorded. Just as the scientists had predicted,women exposed to “fear sweat” adopted typical expressions of fear, opening their eyes and nostrilsand increasing their sensory perception, while those who smelled the“disgust sweat”they showed clear expressions of displeasure on their faces, lowering their eyebrows, frowning and wrinkling their noses. And the most interesting thing is that none of the participants was aware of these effects or related it to the perceived smell.
The findings are important, according to Semin, because they contradict the idea that human communication only occurs through language and gestures. Moreover, the results clearly point to “thatthere are chemical signals that cause people to synchronize emotionally“without being aware of it. This could explain, among other things, the emotional contagion that is observed in situations that involve large crowds of people.
