Pheromones and Their Influence on Human Behavior ERQ

Pheromones

Chemical substances released by an organism that can affect the behaviour or physiology of others of the same species.

Debate about pheromones in humans

Unlike in animals, the existence and influence of pheromones in humans are controversial and not conclusively proven.

AND and EST

AND (androstenone) is a compound found in male sweat; EST (estratetraenol) is found in female urine — both are considered 'putative' human pheromones.

Aim of Zhou et al. (2014)

To investigate whether AND and EST influence gender perception in ways that align with sexual orientation.

Method in Zhou et al.

Participants viewed point-light walker animations while exposed to AND, EST, or control scents, and judged the walker's gender.

Findings of Zhou et al.

Heterosexual women and homosexual men exposed to AND were more likely to see the figure as male; heterosexual men exposed to EST saw the figure as female.

Conclusion of Zhou et al.

Pheromones like AND and EST may subtly influence gender perception based on sexual orientation, supporting a biological basis for social cues.

Strength of Zhou et al.

Double-blind design, inclusion of sexual orientation as a variable, and use of a control condition strengthen internal validity.

Using point-light figures rather than photographs of real human beings helps to eliminate the possible confounding variable of individual differences regarding who/what is attractive

Limitation of Zhou et al.

The task lacks ecological validity as it was artificial in nature and does not consider other variables that may result in judgements pertaining to masculinity or femininity

The use of synthetic AND and EST does not reflect how these steroids are secreted in real-life situations which impairs the external validity of the study

Aim of Hare et al. (2017)

To test whether AND or EST influence gender recognition or attraction to opposite-sex faces.

Method in Hare et al.

Participants completed gender identification and attractiveness rating tasks on two days — once exposed to AND/EST, once to control.

Findings of Hare et al.

No significant difference in performance or ratings between pheromone and control conditions.

Conclusion of Hare et al.

AND and EST do not appear to influence gender perception or attraction, challenging claims that they function as human pheromones.

Strength of Hare et al.

This use of a repeated measures design increases the validity of the findings as it involves each participant being compared with their own performance across conditions

The use of morphed gender faces helps to ensure that no gender markers were present to influence the decision-making of the participants

Limitation of Hare et al.

Lab-based task may not reflect real-life pheromone exposure; may have missed subtler or longer-term behavioural effects.

Relation of studies to human behaviour

They test whether chemical signals influence attraction or social judgments, as they do in animals.

Overall evidence

Findings are mixed; some evidence of influence on perception (Zhou), but little evidence for meaningful behavioural effects (Hare).

Key criticism of pheromone research in humans

It may be biologically reductionist and fails to account for cognitive, cultural, and social influences on attraction.

Future research focus

Using more naturalistic and ecologically valid methods to test how (or if) pheromones influence human behaviour in real-life settings.

Conclusion of the ERQ

While pheromones may play a limited role in gender perception, current evidence does not strongly support their influence on human behaviour.