TRUST IN A BOTTLE

The June 2005 edition of the journal Nature reports a new study linking
a chemical that can be inhaled to increased levels of the feeling of
trust. By whiffing an inhalant of an oxytocin potion, study participants
exhibited notably higher levels of trust with strangers. Scientists
say the chemical inhalant increases "trust" hormones in the
brain in a manner similar to what advertisers seek to do to consumers’
brain chemistry with the use of effective marketing techniques. With
traditional advertising, consumers are mesmerized by stunning imagery
and sounds, ideally resulting in the production of the same types of
chemical responses that result in consumers trusting sales pitches enough
to purchase the advertised product. The study did not address whether
or not the new chemical inhalant could be effectively used on a commercial
level to excite a similar consumer response without the expense of the
actual advertising. /old_articles/corp/trust.cfm