Affectively Mixed Olfactory Experiences

One of the central debates in the contemporary science of affectivity concerns the structure of affective valence. Recent discussion has focused on the possibility of affectively mixed experiences–experiences that are pleasant and unpleasant at the same time. Yet this debate has almost exclusively centered on one class of such experiences: mixed emotions. In this paper, we argue that affective perceptual experiences provide a promising avenue for advancing our understanding of affectively mixed experience. Focusing on the neglected case of olfaction, we first argue that phenomenological evidence supports the existence of affectively mixed olfactory experiences. We then show that, owing to the distinctive temporal dynamics of olfactory processing, these experiences resist a reductive explanation in terms of the vacillation hypothesis, the leading reductive account of affectively mixed phenomenology. Finally, we assess the existing empirical evidence for affectively mixed olfactory experiences and propose experimental paradigms to guide future research.