Led by Eun-Young Mun, Ph.D., in collaboration with the Colgate-Palmolive Company, this project aims to understand how individuals respond to sensory stimuli using a comprehensive assessment approach including both biological and psychological indices of emotion and stress. In particular, this research examines the conditions and boundaries under which increases in positive feelings and decreases in stress response are maximally observed in response to a combination of both tactile and olfactory stimuli. Through the implementation of three experimental studies in which young, healthy individuals are exposed to lotion-like sensates varying in both type and dosage, along with different types of fragrances, this study will provide an in-depth understanding of how individuals react to external stimulations and form activity-dependent personal experiences that will guide behavioral response to such experiences (such as developing preference). Assessments are captured at multiple systems levels, including voluntary, subjective self-report measures (e.g., liking or disliking, tactile and olfactory sensations), involuntary physiological responses tapping into the autonomic nervous system response (e.g., heart rate variability, respiration frequency, skin conductance), hormonal responses (e.g., cortisol and oxytocin), and the spontaneous natural rhythms of the brain.