The smell of coffee improves your math results

Coffee scents that don't contain caffeine create expectations in students that they will perform better on math tests, researchers at Stevens Institute of Technology report.

Benefits of Drinking and Smelling Coffee

Drinking coffee has its benefits. It boosts energy and can reduce the risk of heart disease, diabetes, and dementia. Coffee may even lengthen our lives. A recent discovery adds to this. Research from the Stevens Institute of Technology shows that the mere smell of coffee helps people perform better on the analytical portion of the GMAT (Graduate Management Aptitude Test), a computer-based test administered by many business schools. Adriana Madzharov, the professor leading the team: "It's not just that the smell of coffee helps people perform better on analytical tasks, which is already interesting. The subjects themselves believed that they would perform better when smelling coffee. We showed that this expectation was at least partially responsible for their higher scores ." In short, inhaling coffee aromas that don't contain caffeine has a similar effect to drinking coffee. This suggests a placebo effect of coffee aromas.

Coffee Smell Test

To prove their point, Madzharov's team conducted an algebra test. 100 management students, divided into two groups, were asked to answer 10 questions. One group completed the test in a room scented with coffee. The control group answered the questions in an unscented room. It turned out that the group in the first room achieved significantly higher scores.

Expectations and effects

The researchers wanted to know more. Could the first group's improved quick thinking be partially explained by their expectation that the smell of coffee would increase alertness and subsequently improve performance? To this end, the researchers conducted a follow-up survey. Over 200 new participants answered questions about their beliefs about various smells and their perceived impact on human performance. Participants believed they would have more energy in the presence of the scent of coffee, as opposed to a floral scent. And that this scent would enhance their performance on mental tasks. This suggests that expectations about future performance can be explained by the belief that the scent of coffee itself makes people more alert and energetic.