Can Humans Discriminate Horse ‘Fear’ Chemosignals from Control Chemosignals? Comment on Sabiniewicz et al. A Preliminary Investigation of Interspecific Chemosensory Communication of Emotions: Can Humans (Homo sapiens) Recognise Fear- and Non-Fear Body Odour from Horses (Equus ferus caballus). Animals 2021, 11, 3499.

This research paper critically examines the assumptions made in a previous study investigating whether humans can recognize fear-related odours emitted by horses. The authors challenge the methodology and conclusions of this previous study, suggesting that the way the question was formulated already contained its answer.

Problematic Assumptions and Methodological Issues

The main body of the paper focuses on dissecting the assumptions and potential methodological errors found in the previously published research that aimed to establish if humans can detect fear chemosignals from horses. These include:

• The assumption that the research question was correctly formulated, when, as the authors claim, it potentially contained the answer within it. This suggests a bias in the initial structuring of the research study.
• The assumption concerning odors as emotion carriers, which could have influenced the interpretation of results in the study.
• The authors argue that the methodology used in the previous study has inherent flaws that may have led to misleading or unsupported conclusions.

Call for Transparency and Collaboration in Science

Aside from addressing the specific issues in the analyzed study, this paper also offers a broader commentary on the importance of collaboration, openness, and thorough scrutiny in scientific research. This includes:

• Emphasizing the importance of collaboration between various contributors to achieve a higher degree of objectivity.
• Stressing the necessity for transparency in scientific research. This transparency should enable other scientists to replicate studies and validate (or challenge) the findings.
• Calling on researchers to be vigilant against potential bias and errors in their methodological approach, especially when dealing with complex topics such as animal emotions and chemosensory communication.

Implications for Future Research

The critique offered by this paper has implications for future research involving chemosignals in animals, including:

• Encouraging future studies to adopt a more meticulous and objective approach in formulating research questions. This helps avoid potential bias and the risk of answering the question within its own formulation.
• Urging researchers to critically evaluate their methodology and ensure it is robust enough to effectively support or refute their research question.