[Sigia-l] smelly contextual inquiries?

[Boniface Lau]

> From: Eric Scheid
>  
> On 6/1/05 12:05 PM, "Boniface Lau" 
> <boniface_lau at compuserve.com> wrote:
> 
> > The fact that you remember having seen those things during the
> > inquiry can trigger some inquiry memories. But smelling the odors
> > of those things does not trigger any additional inquiry memories.
> > That is because seeing is not smelling. During the inquiry, you
> > saw the rose on the desk but you did not actually smell it.
>
> I thought it went without saying that it would be necessary to
> imprint the actual scent on your memory.

Then there are some interesting implications from your earlier
suggestion:

ES> While conducting a contextual inquiry, take note of any items
ES> which have a scent ... roses on the desk, the curry flavoured food
ES> containers in the trash, spearmint gum, and so on.

For example, it is one thing to know that a curry flavored food
container has scent, but quite another to actually catch that scent.
Are you therefore implying that people should take from the trash the
curry flavored food container and sniff at it to catch the curry odor?
The same to other smelly items found in the trash such as a pizza
left-over?


[...]
> That is, it seems that both scent and emotional context are required
> to 'burn in' the memory of specific details, while scent alone is
> necessary to facilitate recall.

Yes, emotion is not needed to trigger a recall. But scent-triggered
recalls tend to be emotional. See:

http://www.brown.edu/Administration/George_Street_Journal/vol25/25GSJ05a
.html

"Whisking up a memory with a whiff":

WM> Researchers know that odors don't trigger memories that are any
WM> more accurate than the memories triggered by other stimuli, but
WM> odors do trigger memories that are more emotional. 
WM>
WM> For example, a person may have no emotional reaction to seeing a
WM> photo of a loved one who died. But that person may unexpectedly
WM> encounter the same smell particular to the loved one's study - a
WM> combination of cigarettes and books, for instance - and feel like
WM> weeping, said Herz.


Boniface