Introduction

Correlations between olfactory performance and particular personality traits (e.g., disgust proneness), as well as symptoms of specific mental disorders (e.g., depression) have been found in numerous studies with adults. The present questionnaire study examined whether similar associations already exist in childhood.

Method

The olfactory discrimination ability of 66 children (32 boys and 34 girls aged between 7 and 11 years) was tested. In addition, the children filled out screening questionnaires to assess the severity of symptoms related to depression, various anxiety disorders (e.g., panic disorder, social anxiety disorder), and disgust proneness. A multiple regression analysis was calculated with olfactory performance as criterion variable and questionnaire scores as predictor variables.

Results

The results showed that depression and disgust proneness were negatively associated with olfactory discrimination ability. Moreover, high levels of social anxiety and low levels of panic symptoms were found to be positive predictors of olfactory performance.

Conclusion

This investigation identified specific associations between olfactory performance and affective symptoms in children.

Implications

Future tests with pediatric samples (children with anxiety disorders, depression) are recommended.

中文翻译：

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儿童嗅觉表现与情感症状之间的关联

介绍

在许多成年人研究中发现嗅觉表现与特定的人格特质（例如，厌恶倾向）以及特定的精神障碍（例如，抑郁症）之间存在相关性。本问卷调查研究了儿童期是否已经存在类似的关联。

方法

测试了66名儿童（32名男孩和34名女孩，年龄在7至11岁之间）的嗅觉歧视能力。此外，孩子们填写了筛选调查表，以评估与抑郁症，各种焦虑症（如恐慌症，社交焦虑症）和厌恶倾向有关的症状的严重程度。以嗅觉表现为标准变量，以问卷调查得分为预测变量，进行多元回归分析。

结果

结果表明，抑郁和厌恶倾向与嗅觉辨别能力呈负相关。此外，发现高水平的社交焦虑和低水平的惊恐症状是嗅觉表现的积极预测因子。

结论

这项调查确定了嗅觉表现与儿童情感症状之间的特定关联。

含义

建议将来对儿科样本（患有焦虑症，抑郁症的儿童）进行检查。