Effects of familiar olfactory stimulation on self‐consciousness

Abstract

AbstractBackgroundAutobiographical memory involves self‐life episodes and generic knowledge that enables the meaning attributed to a lifetime story. The semantic autobiographical memory is related to a general knowledge and the episodic autobiographical memory is associated to the personal experiences at specific time and place related to past experiences among a long period of life (Allen, et al., 2018; Eustache et al., 2013, 2016). Autobiographical events activate an autonomic consciousness related to recovers the past memories, while autobiographical semantic knowledge comprises a noetic familiar awareness and a consciousness of past limited (Markowitsch , & Staniloiu, 2011; Piolino et al., 2003; Tulving, 2002). Progressive loss of self‐consciousness presented in Alzheimer Disease (A.D) is connected to the decline of autobiographical episodic memory. Some studies validate positive effects of olfactory stimulation on autobiographical memory (El Haj et al., 2015; Gachet & El Haj, 2020) but no research has evaluated the influence of familiar olfactory stimulation on A.D related to improve self‐consciousness in Colombia. This study aims to assess if the evoked autobiographical memories from familiar olfactory stimulation has an enforcement or facilitator effect on self‐consciousness.MethodFifty people will participate, 25 at the control group and 25 at the experimental group. The control group will have an olfactory stimulation without familiar smells, and the experimental grouo, will have it with familiar smells. There will be three phases: 1) After intervention: Evaluation of autobiographical episodic memory; 2) During intervention: Placebo olfactory stimulation with control group, and olfactory familiar stimulation with experimental group. Then there will be an evaluation of autobiographical episodic memory; 3) Before intervention: Post olfactory stimulation of self‐consciousness.ResultsMore autobiographical memories evoked are expected with the positive valiance of familiar olfactory intervention than the placebo olfactory stimulation in people with A.D. We expect that autobiographical episodic involuntary memories evoked will be more elevated than the voluntary ones on subjective content. We also contemplate that the group of patients with familiar olfactory stimulation will improve their level of self‐consciousness and evoke autobiographical episodic memory.ConclusionThis research will be an important framework for future clinical trials with familiar olfactory intervention in Latin America. Also, for non‐pharmacologic interventions.