Smell

Among the sensory modalities, olfaction is most closely associated with the frontal and temporal brain regions that are implicated in schizophrenia and most intimately related to the affective and mnemonic functions that these regions subserve. Olfactory probes may therefore be ideal tools through which to assess the structural and functional integrity of the neural substrates that underlie disease-related cognitive and emotional disturbances.

Androstadienone, a component of male sweat, has been suggested to function as a human pheromone, an airborne chemical signal causing specific responses in conspecifics. In earlier studies androstadienone has been reported to increase attraction, affect subjects' mood, cortisol levels and activate brain areas linked to social cognition, among other effects. However, the existing psychological evidence is still relatively scarce, especially regarding androstadienone's effects on male behaviour.

Historically hypnosis with deaf people has been an underutilized intervention as the deaf were assumed not to be responsive to hypnotic suggestion. Recent research has begun to challenge these assumptions. Matthews and Isenberg (in press) compared the hypnotic responsiveness of deaf and hearing subjects on the Stanford Hypnotic Susceptibility Scale, form C (SHSS:C) all of whom received the hypnotic suggestions via sign language. Those results supported the notion that deaf subjects are capable of responding to hypnotic suggestion and may be as hypnotically responsive as hearing subjects.

The authors developed a technique, which they call hypnotherapeutic olfactory conditioning (HOC), for exploiting the ability of scents to arouse potent emotional reactions. During hypnosis, the patient learns to associate pleasant scents with a sense of security and self-control. The patient can subsequently use this newfound association to overcome phobias and prevent panic attacks. This may be especially effective for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) with episodes of anxiety, flashbacks, and dissociation triggered by smells.

Many combat veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have an olfactory component to their traumatic memories that might be utilized by a technique called hypnotherapeutic olfactory conditioning (HOC). Thirty-six outpatients with chronic PTSD, featuring resistant olfactory-induced flashbacks, were treated with six 1.5-hour sessions using hypnosis. The authors used the revised Impact of Events Scale (IES-R), Beck Depression Inventory, and Dissociative Experiences Scale as outcome measures.