Clean out the clutter and clean out your life, cleanliness is next to Godliness and now in a brand new study in Psychological Science lead author Katie Liljenquist claims that all you have to do is spritz some citrus-scented Windex in a room and people will behave more ethically – without them consciously realizing it.
In this study aptly called, “The Smell of Virtue,” Liljenquist explains, “Companies often employ heavy-handed interventions to regulate conduct, but they can be costly or oppressive. This is a very simple, unobtrusive way to promote ethical behavior.” The participants in the experiment were sent to unscented and scented rooms for different objectives like fairness in sharing money and volunteering for charitable behavior. Follow-up questions revealed that participants did not consciously notice whether they were in scented or unscented rooms. The findings were bright: rooms cleaned with Windex-citrus smelling spray housed more fair-minded and charitable actions.
Think about the implications for daily life. For example, if your children clean up their rooms with a fresh scent, they might make better choices as opposed to acting impulsively. Consider when you are having an argument that is going nowhere that you could easily change the energy by taking it into a freshly scented room.
If you saw My Big Fat Greek Wedding, you will probably always remember the ridiculous role Windex played as a miracle treatment for skin ailments like acne, psoriasis or poison ivy. However, nobody is laughing in this study because neurologists like Dr. Alan Hirsch have demonstrated that smell is linked to brain power. Our sense of smell helps us to sniff out a mate, recall a memory or enhance learning. It is how we communicate without words. People tend to learn less and reject direction if the person managing them releases a subtly unpleasant order. Children tend to recall what they learn when there is a hint of peppermint. Lavender is used to calm dementia patients.
Some sense about scents:
* When bad smelling air pollution is high, more car accidents occur. Also, think about your car’s interior odors during heavy traffic. If you tend to get upset, use a more pleasant scent.
* Try not to overdo it with perfume or cologne because you might prove to be a distraction at work.
* If you are working late into the night on an intellectually demanding project or studying difficult material, aromas like peppermint and jasmine might help you out.
* If you are considering spending more on essential oils for aromatherapy, Dr. Hirsch advises that you save your money because ordinary sprays work just as well for your mood and mindset.
I remember reading this study somewhere (maybe The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell?). Love learning about these kinds of things!
Debbie, very nice article. Pleasurable scents having a calming effect for me even when all I have of them is the mental sensation (memory) of certain scents. Scents have certainly left vivid flag posts along my journey. Thanks for the memories!
This is a lovely post. Connecting with people based on sensory preferences is a very appealing idea. Personally I find citrus scents to be not only invigorating but illuminating. My favorite is verbena. I like it in bath and body products and in essential oils for diffusing. Oils can actually be fairly economical, since a little goes a long way and you can add them to inexpensive non scented products and make your own perfume like combinations.
Yes, Aroma therapy is good cheap therapy. I agree with everything here EXCEPT cheap aromas/artificial are ugh and potentially health haz. Artificial vanilla trash bags BIG EW.
My favorites seem to be citrus( real ) based. I love to use straight lavender, eucalyptus( for colds).
Jasmine, what can i say.
Real smells are the best. Chemically created: ew, makes me break out and hard to breathe. There is a dif, go ORGANIC, great post.
love Jas