Bitter Taste Causes Hostility

The present research tested the novel hypothesis that bitter taste increases hostility. theoretical background formed the intimate link of the taste-sensory system to the visceral system,with bitter intake typically eliciting a strong aversion response. three experiments using differential bitter and control stimuli showed that hostile affect and behavior is increased by bitter taste experiences. specifically,participants who consumed a bitter (vs. control) drink showed an increase in self-reported current hostility (experiment 1),in hypothetical aggressive affect and hypothetical aggressive behavior (experiment 2) and in actual hostile behavior assessed using a well-established method for non-physical laboratory aggression (experiment 3). furthermore,the effect occurred not only when participants were previously provoked (experiments 2 and 3) but also when no provocation preceded (experiment 1 and 3). importantly,stimulus aversiveness and intensity did not influence the effects observed,ruling them out as explanations. alternative interpretative frameworks and limitations are discussed. © 2014 by the society for personality and social psychology,inc.