Author(s): Parma, Valentina ; Redolfi, Nelly ; Alho, Laura ; Rocha, Marta ; Ferreira, Jacqueline ; Silva, Carlos Fernandes da ; Soares, Sandra C.
Date: 2019
Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.12/7074
Origin: Repositório do ISPA - Instituto Universitário
Subject(s): Bias; Body odors; Ethnicity; Ingroup; Outgroup; Olfaction
Individuals of African and Caucasian descent show different chemical signatures in their body odors (BO). Does such biological difference have a perceptual correlate? We tested BO donors and raters of Afro-Portuguese (AP) and Caucasian (C) descent to investigate whether olfactory ratings reveal an ethnic bias and whether olfactory ethnic discrimination is possible. C (vs. AP) women rated the C BO as more pleasant, even when controlling for intensity. The C BO labelled as AP was rated as more intense by C raters. Although discriminability of ethnicity and sex is at chance, a nominal advantage for AP vs. C BO emerges.
