Zhou et al (2014) 

Uses: Pheromones

Aim: To investigate whether androstadienone plays a role in human sexual behaviour

 

Method: True experiment, controlled, counter balanced (orders are changed)

 

IV: The type of pheromone or control exposed on the participants (AND, Est or control).

IV: gender and sexuality of the participants. (heterosexual, homosexual, male, female)

DV: The response which the participant, whether they identify the dot as a male or female.

 

Procedure:

  • 24 heterosexual males, 24 heterosexual females, 24 homosexual males and 24 bisexual or homosexual females. All none smoker. Control group have clove oil.

  • Participants were presented a point-light walker task (PLW), a set of dots that move in a way which represents the properties of human motion. The participants were asked to observe the stick figure in motion and to identify its sex.

  • Performed the task at around the same time of the day on three consecutive days while being continuously exposed to either androstadienone mixed with cloves, estratetraenol mixed with cloves, or a control solution, also mixed with cloves. All of the scents are counterbalanced.

 

Results:

  • The researchers found that when heterosexual females and gay males were exposed to AND, they had a higher rate of identifying the stick figure as “masculine” than the control group. AND had no significant effect on heterosexual men or lesbian women. By contrast, smelling EST systematically biases heterosexual males toward perceiving the walkers as more feminine. The EST's effect was not statistically significant in bisexual and lesbian women. Therefore AND and EST may have some effects on human sexual behaviour. NOT SURE IF CORRECT

  • EST caused heterosexual males to make less ‘male’ identifications, but did not in heterosexual females.

  • AND caused heterosexual females and homosexual males to make more ‘male’ identifications, but did not in heterosexual males.

  • In bisexual and homosexual females, there was no effect of EST nor AND on gender identification.

 

 

Conclusion:

  • Androstadienone signals masculinity to heterosexual females and homosexual males, whereas estratetraenol signals femininity to heterosexual males, without the recipients being aware of the odors.

  • The specific sexual information conveyed by androstadienone and estratetraenol strongly supports them as human sex pheromones.

 

 

Evaluate:

  • True experiment cause and effect

  • Large group of participants so it can be generalised.

  • Controlled group

  • The task they were asked to do are abstract

  • A big jump in the conclusion

  • Use of a control

  • Counter balanced and repeated measures.

  • The use of a range of participants in term of gender and sexuality.

  • Odor covered in clove oil to prevent conscious detection of the androstadienone.

  • Pheromones influence in a dose-dependent manner. To maximize experimental power, Zhou used concentrations significantly higher than those naturally occurring in human secretion.

  • The use of PLW lacks ecological validity in terms of gender identification of humans.

  • The findings have not been supported by further research such as Hare et al (2017)

 

 

Not supported by further findings (Hare)

Zhou, W., Yang, X., Chen, K., Cai, P., He, S., & Jiang, Y. (2014). Chemosensory communication of gender through two human steroids in a sexually dimorphic manner. Current biology : CB, 24(10), 1091–1095. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2014.03.035