According to a recent study conducted at Northwestern's Kellogg School of Business, the implication is yes. Researchers found a link between citrus-scented cleaners (rather than antiseptic scents) and virtuous behavior. Seriously, we're not kidding...
Chicago Public Radio's Adriene Hill interviewed Northwestern Professor Adam Galinsky, who performed tests of morality, such as trust games, on two groups of people: one in a clean-scented room and the other in a normal room. The group that smelled the citrus scent reacted in a more "virtuous way" than the other group.
Galinsky said that the clean smell "sort of activates that natural association between cleanliness and morality."
For the whole story from Chicago Public Radio, click here.
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Comments (17)
or, smelling anti-septic cleansers makes people cranky.
sounds like a seriously bogus study....brought to you by the makers of lemon scented pledge, no doubt.
Brings new meaning to "cleanliness is next to Godliness"
I really don't think this sounds far-fetched. If cleaning is a task, an accomplishment, and if completing responsibilities is a sign of a virtuous person, then there is sound reasoning. It helps that I'm a clean person in terms of surroundings, and am inclined to agree with the premise.
FYI: This does not work on cat's behavior. I've tried.
"...sort of activates..."
science!
For me, using bio*life (a plant derived soap infused with essential oils) makes my cleaning more enjoyable. I guess it's normal that something that smells good puts you in a good mood so you're more likely to do good. It's king of like aromatherapy.
I didn't click on the link, but, just to clarify, according to the post, it's not the cleaning that makes you virtuous but smelling the citrus scent:
"The group that smelled the citrus scent reacted in a more "virtuous way" than the other group."
Yes, this experiment did not have much for controls, so I don't know how rigarous these researchers are
If you were put in a dirty room but had lemon oil sprayed on your face, would you not be 'virtuous' as well?
whoops, rigorous
citrus scents make me feel happy and comfortable and safe, and when I feel that way, I know I'd be more likely to be generous than greedy.
Thanks for the comments. I revised the first sentence from "...the answer is yes" to "...the implication is yes" to more accurately reflect the scope of the study.
I need to know where to buy that dishrack; it's awesome.
Did the 'virtuous' group refuse drugs or something else bad after smelling citrus?
i had a roomate who used natural citrus cleaner all the time that made me nauseous and cranky. they need to include me in their study.
Kaonashi, the dishrack is from IKEA.
It's called "priming" -- there are all kinds of studies about behavioral effects like this.
People can be subconsciously flashed words associated with old age (florida, cane, wrinkles) and they'll walk out of the room more slowly than people exposed to random words.
@marlo
I'm going to try this with my husband using words like 'millionaire' and 'George Clooney'.