Making Science Happen

I've had an on-again-off-again relationship with pheromones for several years now. I've noticed some subjective effects, but not enough to rule out placebo. I've been consistently frustrated by the lack of conclusive scientific data to prove the effectiveness of pheromones as a sexual attractant. And so, I've decided to do a little science myself.

The Experiment:
I will be systematically testing whether NPA has an effect on random strangers I have brief conversations with. The test will be blind (but not double-blind) and placebo controlled.

The Methodology:
Each test day, my girlfriend will seal herself in our spare bedroom with NPA, Burberry Brit cologne, plastic food handling gloves, and 1 clean t-shirt. She will use a random number generator to determine whether that day will be a pheromone day (in which I will wear NPA pheromones, covered by the cologne) or a placebo day (in which I only wear the cologne). Fortunately, I fall into the section of the population that is unable to smell androstenone.

If the random number generator chooses that the day is a pheromone day, girlfriend will put on a plastic glove (this is to ensure that the NPA bottle is not contaminated) and apply 1 dab at a time to her finger. She will smear the dab across the collar of the t-shirt. For each pheromone day, she will increase the number of dabs applied. I'd like to ask the community how many total dabs I should stop at, before the obviousness of OD prevents further useful data. At that point, she will decrease the number of dabs until we reach 1 again. After that, we she will repeat the cycle. She will then cover the area with 2-3 sprays of the cologne. If the random number generator chooses that the day is a placebo day, she will only apply the cologne, and not the pheromones. She will leave the bedroom and I will wait several minutes to make sure the shirt is dry.

I will then get dressed, including the treated shirt. I will drive to a local Target store, about 15 minutes away. I will enter and approach 5, random, relatively isolated strangers. I will tell them a quick, stupid joke, potentially followed by asking if they can tell me a stupid joke. I will observe the social behavior of the participant.

When I finish, I will come home and log my results in this thread. I will also include other relevant information, such as my appearance that day and potential psychological effects from the pheromones. I will also guess whether I was wearing the pheromones. I won't, however, learn whether or not I was wearing the pheromones until 10 days in, 20 days in, and at the end of the experiment.

I will rate several attributes on a scale from 0 to 10. These include:
- appearance. 10 means I'm going to a wedding. 5 mean I look fine but not great. 0 means I look repulsive. Note that this isn't about my attractiveness in general, but only how I present myself from day to day.
- social experience per person. 10 means they were utterly delighted by me. 5 means they were courteous and polite, but otherwise indifferent. 0 means they were angry and annoyed that I would talk to them.
- confidence. since general confidence can affect how people react to others, I will be rating my confidence, even though I realize it can potentially be affected by the pheromones. 10 means I feel like the world belongs to me. 5 means I feel neutral. 0 means I feel afraid of people and generally crappy about life.
- whether or not I'm wearing pheromones. 10 means I'm basically certain I have them on. 0 means I'm certain I don't. 5 means I have no idea one way of the other.

About me:
I am 30 years old, caucasian. I'm nerdy and meek, but I do consistently exercise on a treadmill.

Day 1:

The joke:
"what do you call a bear with no teeth? Gummy bear."

My appearance:
4 - Black jeans, black shoes, messy bed hair, unshaven for several days. My t-shirt was yellow. Glasses.

Psychological effects:
I felt confident, and important, but the effect was subtle. I know what androstenone is supposed to do, so this was well within the range of placebo.

Confidence:
7

Notes:
I did not ask any of the 5 people to tell me a joke in return.

Person 1:
5 - Female, middle aged. politely humored my joke. Nothing interesting.

Person 2:
6 - Woman probably in her 30s. Politely humored my joke. As I walked away she said "that's funny". Nothing interesting.

Person 3:
4 - Woman probably in her 30s.Somewhat attractive. Continued walking as I asked her the joke, but still acknowledged me. Chuckled at the punchline. Nothing interesting.

Person 4:
5 - Woman in her 50s or 60s. Politely humored my joke. Not interesting.

Person 5:
8 - Male probably in his 30s. Short, looked like a body builder. First genuine laugh. Seemed delighted that a random person would approach him with such a stupid joke. Still not particularly unusual.

Thoughts on whether I was wearing the pheromone:
6 - Due to a methodological error (girlfriend had to ask for gloves) I think that I was wearing the pheromone, though I'm not certain. If not for the error, I would probably guess that I wasn't. My number rating is what I would have probably guessed if not for the error. A box of gloves has been placed in the room to avoid further errors.

Day 2:

The joke:
"what do you call a bear with no teeth? Gummy bear."

Appearance:
6. I went out last night and my hair still looks kind of good. I didn't shave today, but I did last night. My glasses are slightly nerdier than my normal glasses. Blue shirt, black workout pants, grey slip on shoes.

Psychological effects:
I didn't notice any

Confidence:
5

Notes:
I didn't sleep well.
One elderly lady lingered her eyes on me for a few moments. Not too weird but worth noting.

Person 1:
7. Female Late 30s maybe. Somewhat attractive. Walking quickly but stopped to talk to me. Was charmed by my joke.

Person 2:
6. Female 20s. attractive. Cute accent. Was open to my joke. Didnt have a joke to tell me in response.

Person 3:
4. Female 30s. Athletic. Seemed mildly annoyed by my approach, but humored me anyway. Didnt have a response joke.

Person 4:
5. Late 30s female. Somewhat attractive. Kept moving as I told my joke. When I asked her for a joke, she paused for a moment as though thinking, said she's no good at jokes, then disappeared down an aisle.

Person 5:
7. Early 20s somewhat attractive. I'm uncertain how to rate this. She was immediately giggly in an awkward and uncomfortable way. She laughed awkwardly but heartily at my joke. She didn't seem interested in staying so I didnt ask her to tell me a joke.

Thoughts on whether I was wearing the pheromone:
6. There were no noticeable mental effects which made me think I had no pheromones on. Some responses from people were oddly positive, at least more than yesterday, making me wonder if I was wearing them after all. Positive responses might also be from improved appearance. Edit from the next day: I’m now nearly certain that I can detect the psychological effect of the pheromone. I don’t think I was wearing any this day.

Day 3:

The joke:
"what do you call a bear with no teeth? Gummy bear."

My appearance:
4. Black jeans; grey shoes; somewhat messy, boring hair; unshaven for 2 days. My t-shirt was light red with a vintage pacman picture. Glasses.

Psychological effects:
On walking into the room with the treated shirt, I felt an immediate sense of what I might call shyness. In the car on the way to target, I felt like a 1980s business guy (powerful, important). When I got to target, I actually felt slightly embarrassed, almost as though I was walking around in a skin tight speedo for all to see. The effect diminished over time.
Confidence:
5. While there was a psychological effect, the blatant sexual nature of it left me feeling a little shy.
Notes:
The weather today was a little chilly with a light misty rain.

Person 1:
6. Elderly woman. Seemed to enjoy my joke without making a big deal about it. Repeated the punchline.

Person 2:
7. Woman probably in her 40s. Laughed genuinely.

Person 3:
7. Woman probably in her 30s. Not very attractive, but not hideous. Laughed genuinely at my joke. Seemed receptive.
Person 4:
7. Woman in her mid-late 20s. Cute face, chubby. Seemed a little shy. I might guess that she was mildly attracted, but I wouldn’t bet money on it. She was the only person I asked for a joke. She didn’t have one. She seemed slightly confused by the experience, but not in a negative way.
Person 5:
6. Woman in her late 30s/early 40s. not terribly attractive, not an ogre. Continued walking as I asked her the joke, but still responded positively. She actually guessed the answer correctly. I said “ah, you got it”. She said “see? I’m smart”.

Thoughts on whether I was wearing the pheromone:
8. The psychological effect is becoming clearer to me. If I could change yesterday’s, I would make it a 3 due to the lack of psychological effect. No obvious hits or women wanting to jump my bones, but everyone today was positive. It would be funny if today ended up being a placebo day.

Day 4:

The joke:
"what do you call a bear with no teeth? Gummy bear."

My appearance:
3. Black jeans; grey shoes; messy, boring hair; unshaven for 3 days. My t-shirt was black. Glasses.

Psychological effects:
On walking into the room with the treated shirt, I felt a slight effect, but it was gone quickly, which makes me think any effect I felt was placebo.
Confidence:
5.
Notes:
The weather today was a little chilly with a light misty rain.

Person 1:
4. Woman late 30s. Mildly attractive. Seemed uneasy at my presence. Still politely humored me as she kept walking. Awkwardly laughed and said it was funny.

Person 2:
7. Elderly woman. Seemed to genuinely enjoy the interaction. Said she would have to tell her grandson.

Person 3:
6. Woman late 30s. attractive. Seemed confused at my approach, but awkwardly laughed and was polite.
Person 4:
6. Woman around 18 probably. Cute face, chubby. Seemed comfortable with my approach. Laughed politely.
Person 5:
6. Woman in her early to mid 40s. not terribly attractive, not an ogre. Seemed a bit surprised by my approach, but made a point to engage.

Thoughts on whether I was wearing the pheromone:
3. I’m basing these mostly on the mental effect, and there wasn’t one.

Day 5:

The joke:
"what do you call a bear with no teeth? Gummy bear."

My appearance:
8. Black jeans; black sneakers; shaven, nice hair. I had a social event immediately after that I needed to look good for. My t-shirt was blue. no glasses.

Psychological effects:
At first I didn’t notice an effect. When I got to target, I felt a certain impunity towards social situations I felt comfortable in my skin. Interestingly, I still didn’t ask anyone to tell me a joke.
Confidence:
8.
Notes:
A lot of women smiled at me. It was noticeable. I did look a lot better, but even when I look good, women don’t smile at me that much.

Person 1:
6*. Woman late 30s/early 40s. Mildly attractive. I rate a 6 at the pure content of the interaction, but there was also an unusual occurrence. *After I gave her the setup of the joke, the stared at me, wide-eyed, as though thinking of the answer, before finally asking. I wonder if this is what is referred to as the DIHL.

Person 2:
8. Woman late 30s. She laughed heartily after I told her the punchline and said “that’s cute!”. She seemed genuinely glad that I told her this stupid joke.

Person 3:
3. Woman late 30s/early 40s. unattractive. She was looking for a product. She only barely even acknowledged my existence. After the setup she said “what” and after the punchline she said “good” both with no change in her expression.

Person 4:
6. Man, mid-late 20s. Seemed slightly confused by my approach and a bit awkward, but humored me anyway.

Person 5:
6. Woman around my age. Attractive. Receptive, open, and polite. I’d call it a high 6.

Thoughts on whether I was wearing the pheromone:
7. I thought I could tell whether I was wearing pheromone by the psychological effect, but I’m no longer sure. I definitely had some noticeable social effects happening. They might have been coincidence and/or the fact that I was better groomed than usual, but overall they were unusual to my every day experience, even considering everything else. It's also interesting that today I had both my best and my worst responses yet. For those reasons, I predict that I was wearing the pheromones today, and my guess is I wore 3 dabs.

Day 6:

The joke:
"what do you call a bear with no teeth? Gummy bear."


Appearance:
7. I still look kind of good from yesterday. Crappy glasses. Black gym pants, grey shoes, grey t-shirt.


Psychological effects:
I didn’t really notice any today.


Confidence:
Started at 6, went to 3 by the end.


Note:
No one smiled at me other than an elderly employee and even then it seemed obligatory and short. A few people seemed to purposely not smile or look away.


Person 1:
2. Woman late 30s chubby. After the setup she said "why?" And seemed somewhat annoyed. She was silent after the punchline. After a moment I said "that's it". She repeated "that's it". I walked away. I'm not sure but I think I heard her tell a nearby employee about the experience. The interaction shook my confidence a little.


Person 2:
5. Elderly woman. During the setup she continued walking but slowed down and rolled her eyes slightly. She wasn't into it but she humored me anyway.


Person --:
Late 30s latina. Didn’t speak English well. After the punchline she told me where the gummy bears were. I said thank you and walked away. I didn't feel that it should count as a data point.


Person 3:
6.Woman around my age. Overweight with lots of makeup. Seemed receptive. Gave a hearty laugh and said "that's a good one". This was a high 6.


Person 4:
5. Woman mid 30s quite attractive. Humored my joke and gave a decent laugh. Seemed pretty uninterested overall. Maybe a high 5.


Person 5:
5. Woman in her 50s. Humored me politely. Said "you got me". Uninteresting.


Thoughts on whether I was wearing the pheromone:
7. The first interaction was the worst I’ve ever gotten. I wonder if this is what is known as the OD effect. The other interactions were also unimpressive. The first I interaction could be a coincidence and the others could be a result of my shaken confidence. If I was wearing, it was probably 4 dabs.

Day 7:

The joke:
"what do you call a bear with no teeth? Gummy bear."


Appearance:
4. Messy, boring hair. Glasses. Black pants, grey shoes, light grey t-shirt.


Psychological effects:
I thought I noticed something at first, but it went away.


Confidence:
6


Note:
People seemed neutral towards me. No smiles but no one seemed mad at me


Person 1:
7. Woman 50s. Laughed genuinely after the setup. Laughed more after the punchline. Enjoyed the experience.


Person 2:
5. Woman 20s attractive. Humored me politely but didn’t seem interested.


Person 3:
6.Woman 20s slightly overweight. Laughed at the joke. As I was walking away, she said “thank you for that”.


Person 4:
5. Woman late 30s. Looked a little like tig notaro. Humored my joke and laughed a little. Pretty uninterested overall. Maybe a high 5.


Person 5:
5. Woman in her 40s. Humored me politely. Uninteresting.


Thoughts on whether I was wearing the pheromone:
3. I’m starting to think that the psychological effects are either placebo or indistinguishable from placebo. There seems to be little correlation between the psychological effect and the reactions of people toward me. Today people seemed neither drawn to me nor repelled from me. I’ll have to guess that today was a placebo.

Day 8:

The joke:
"what do you call a bear with no teeth? Gummy bear."

Appearance:
6. Hair looked decent. Glasses. Black pants, grey shoes, light yellow t-shirt with clever graphics.

Psychological effects:
Nothing really.

Confidence:
6

Note:
It’s pouring down rain. I did my best to not let my pheromones get wet. The intensity of the rain was somewhat distracting, and is makingit difficult to specifically remember each experience, but the numbers should hold true. One cute girl smiled at me. Then I told her a joke.

Person 1:
7. Woman 40s unattractive. Seemed to enjoy the joke pretty well.

Person 2:
5. Woman 40s unattractive. Humored me politely. Gave a reasonable laugh.

Person 3:
6.Woman 40s somewhat attractive. Laughed at the joke.

Person 4:
6. Woman early 20s. Cute. When I first saw her, she smiled at me. It seemed more like a smile of kindness than a smile of attraction. Humored my joke and laughed a little.

Person 5:
6. Woman in her 40s. seemed startled at first but then laughed pretty genuinely.

Thoughts on whether I was wearing the pheromone:
4. The day that I got the best reactions was day 5. The was just a certain something that I got from people that wasn’t there today, Still, the reactions were decent, and I did get one smile, so I wouldn’t be shocked if it turned out to be a pheromone day. I’m still going to guess that it wasn’t.

Day 9:

The joke:
"what do you call a bear with no teeth? Gummy bear."
Appearance:
4. Messy hair. Glasses. 2 days unshaven. Black pants, grey shoes, brown t-shirt.
Psychological effects:
I felt very comfortable approaching people today.
Confidence:
8
Note:
no looks.
Person 1:
7. Elderly woman. Laughed after the setup and the punchline. Continued talking a little as I was walking away, saying “I can’t think that fast!”
Person 2:
7. Woman 60s probably attractive when she was younger. Enjoyed the joke.
Person 3:
5.Woman 30s. politely humored me and walked away.
Person 4:
5. Woman 50s. humored the joke. Laughed.
Person 5:
5. Woman 40ish. Humored me, said “good one” and moved on.
Thoughts on whether I was wearing the pheromone:
5. I really have no idea.

Day 10:
Appearance:
3. Messy hair. Crappy glasses. Unshaven. Blue grey tshirt. Black gym pants. Grey shoes.
Confidence:
6. High 6
Psychological effects:
Nothing significant.
Notes:
One older lady smiled at me.
Person 1:
6. Woman 20ish. Somewhat attractive, athletic. Seemed open. Laughed. Said "Good one."
Person 2:
6. woman 50s. Enjoyed the joke.
Person 3:
6. Woman 50s. Enjoyed the joke without making a big deal.
Person 4:
5. Woman 40ish. Was polite but not interested.
Person 5:
6. Woman 30s. Enjoyed the joke. Said "good one"
Thoughts on whether I was wearing the pheromone:
6. Not sure at all but the responses were positive overall.

And here are the results from the first 10 days:

day 1 Placebo

day 2 Placebo

day 3 Pheromone 1 dabs

day 4 Placebo

day 5 Placebo

day 6 Placebo

day 7 Pheromone 2 dabs

day 8 Placebo

day 9 Pheromone 3 dabs

day 10 Pheromone 4 dabs


What fascinates me the most are days 5 and 6. These were the days that I got the most significant results. On 5, I had girls smiling at me and great reactions. On 6, people were rude to me. Both days were placebo. The thing is, if I'd been purposefully wearing pheromones those days (as in not doing a placebo controlled experiment), I would have come home and reported that pheromones work, that day 5 I got crazy hits, and that day 6 I got an OD effect. What I think I've instead demonstrated is just how powerful and deceiving a placebo can be.

It's important to understand that placebo is more than just positive thinking. It also means self-confirming bias, reporting bias, etc. To test pheromones, we naturally put ourselves out in front of people more, and we actively look for signs that its working. These actions will naturally make us perceive better interactions with women.

I'm a little bummed out, because I really want pheromones to work. Granted, none of these results conclusively show that pheromones don't work. I might have used them incorrectly or made any number of errors. What it does show is how much nothing but placebo can look like true pheromone hits, including OD, dihl, and everything else. It gives a better understanding of how we should read anecdotal accounts of pheromone success.

I'd still like to finish the test, and see if the quantitative analysis yield better news than my qualitative analysis. I might give it a break for a while though, while I catch up on life stuff.