2017/10/02 by Maaike J. de Bruijn, Michael Bender · 1 citation
Neuroscience · Psychology · #Creativity in Education and Neuroscience #Olfactory and Sensory Function Studies #Visual and Cognitive Learning Processes
paper · pdf · doi:10.1080/09658211.2017.1381744
openalex publication_date 2017/10/02 · openalex created_date 2017/10/20 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/16
Folk wisdom often refers to odours as potent triggers for autobiographical memory, akin to the Proust phenomenon that describes Proust's sudden recollection of a childhood memory when tasting a madeleine dipped into tea. Despite an increasing number of empirical studies on the effects of odours on cognition, conclusive evidence is still missing. We set out to examine the effectiveness of childhood and non-childhood odours as retrieval cues for autobiographical memories in a lab experiment. A total of 170 participants were presented with pilot-tested retrieval cues (either odours or images) to recall childhood memories and were then asked to rate the vividness, detail, and emotional intensity of these memories. Results showed that participants indeed reported richer memories when presented with childhood-related odours than childhood-related images or childhood-unrelated odours or images. An exploratory analysis of memory content with Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count did not reveal differences in affective content. The findings of this study support the notion that odours are particularly potent in eliciting rich memories and open up numerous avenues for further exploration.