Effects of an evoked refreshing consumption context on hedonic responses to apple juice measured using best–worst scaling and the 9-pt hedonic category scale

Awareness of the need to consider a product’s consumption context when measuring consumer hedonic response of a product is increasing among consumer sensory researchers. This study investigated the effects of evoking a consumption context using a written scenario on hedonic response measured using best–worst scaling and the 9-pt hedonic category scale. Hedonic responses for four apple juices with relatively large sensory differences were compared when measured in the evoked context ‘when having something refreshing to drink’ using best–worst hedonic scaling (n = 65) and the 9-pt hedonic scale (n = 48). Best–worst scaling discriminated between the four apple juices when a refreshing context was evoked (p < 0.01), while the juices were equally liked using the 9-point scale (p = 0.41) when the same context was evoked. Consumers perceived best–worst scaling to be more difficult than the 9-pt scale, however there was no difference between the two methods for consumers perceived accuracy of their liking information. The present study highlights that the effect of an evoked context on hedonic response may not be universal for hedonic methods. Further research is needed to understand the effect of evoking context on the liking of products, and to determine whether this measure reflects product liking in an actual consumption context.     

Sushi at the beach: Effects of congruent and incongruent immersive contexts on food evaluations

Prior research using immersive technology has shown that consumption contexts can be successfully recreated to elicit effects on hedonic food evaluations, but the food-specificity of these effects is as of yet unclear. The current study investigates how repeated exposure to foods in congruent and incongruent immersive contexts affects hedonic perception over time. Two groups of participants (N = 23, N = 18) were exposed to three food products (sushi, popsicle and iced tea) in either an immersive beach context or an immersive sushi restaurant context for seven days. On the eighth day, participants were exposed to the same foods once more, but switched to the other context. Hedonic evaluations were collected prior to and during tasting at initial exposure (day 1), after repeated exposure to the same context (day 7) and in the switched context (day 8); consumption behavior was monitored on exposure days (days 2–6). Results showed that prior to tasting, expected liking and desire to eat were higher for congruent food-context combinations (popsicle at the beach, sushi in the sushi restaurant) than for incongruent combinations (popsicle in the sushi restaurant, sushi at the beach). Upon tasting, no differences were found in average food liking, but individual liking ratings for congruent (vs. incongruent) food-context combinations were more consistent over time. Immersive contexts also elicited general effects, such that a typical consumption environment (sushi restaurant) increased food consumption and yielded more consistent product liking ratings over time. Findings underline the importance of taking a holistic view on consumer testing, and showcase the potential of immersive technology.     

What reported food-evoked emotions may add: A model to predict consumer food choice

Food-evoked emotions provide information that goes beyond the information from traditional hedonic ratings. The objectives of our study were: (i) to investigate how intrinsic (sensory) and extrinsic (packaging) cues affect consumers’ emotional responses to foods, and (ii) to explore whether emotional responses to these cues combined with liking, predict actual food choice. Participants (n = 103) rated emotional responses to seven products under a blind taste, a package and a package and taste condition using the EsSense Profile™. During the blind taste condition participants also scored liking of the products. Test products were breakfast drinks and desserts. Food choice was measured in two different breakfast sessions reflecting a different choice context. In one choice context, products were presented blind to taste, after which participants chose one out of the seven foods to consume for breakfast. In the other choice context, participants based their choice on the package of the seven foods without tasting them. Results showed that emotions evoked by food products could be organised in a two-dimensional space, representing a valence (pleasantness) and an activation/arousal dimension. Specific emotional profiles generated for products differed across the blind taste, package and the package and taste condition, meaning that intrinsic and extrinsic product properties elicit in part different emotions. Liking and valence together had the strongest predictive value for product choice based on the product’s taste. The combination of liking, valence and arousal had the strongest predictive value for package-based choice. In conclusion, food-evoked emotions add predictive value to solely liking ratings, and may guide consumers’ product choice behaviour.     

Analytic approaches to evaluation modify hedonic responses

Recent research on using tastes to condition hedonic responses in odours has shown that analytical approaches to the odour/taste elements during conditioning inhibit the development of changes in odour liking. Since analytical ratings are frequently made by consumers in conjunction with ratings of overall liking of products, we examined whether the effect of analytical approaches was also evident in sensory evaluations. A comparison was made between overall liking ratings of a tea drink, made with (analytical) or without (synthetic) the anticipation of subsequent attribute ratings. Compared to two analytical groups, the synthetic group gave significantly higher liking ratings. These data are interpreted in the light of recent findings that analytical approaches inhibit the utilization of hedonic information.     

Hedonic tests in different locations as predictors of apple juice consumption at home in elderly and young subjects

The objective of this study was to evaluate the predictive value of hedonic tests on apple juice carried out in a sensory laboratory, University common room and at home (post-consumption test) on ad libitum home consumption measured over 5 consecutive days. Thirty-five elderly volunteers (59–88 years old) and 33 young subjects (20–30 years old) assessed the degree of liking five apple juices varying in sweetness (0, 2, 4, 7 and 10% w/w sucrose added) on a nine-point hedonic scale. Both age groups judged similarly the juice with the lowest sugar concentrations, whereas the juice with 2% sugar added received lower scores from the elderly compared to the young participants. Those samples with higher sweetness (4, 7 and 10%) received higher scores from the elderly compared to the young people. The sample with no sugar added had higher mean score (all the subjects) in the home test (6.92±1.78) compared to both laboratory (5.51±2.15) and common room (5.92±2.08). No such differences were observed for the juices with the other sugar contents. In the elderly group, 1-day intake of apple juice remained on a similar level, regardless of sweetness liking, while among young adults the intake varied, and was highest for juices that were liked most (with 0 and 2% sucrose added). The results showed that hedonic ratings have a limited value as predictors of fruit juice consumption at home. The correlation between rated degree of liking and intake was low, especially for the elderly (r=0.39), indicating that factors other than pleasantness may affect intake. Among three test conditions, the lowest correlation of juice intake was obtained with laboratory test results (r=0.38), relatively higher—when hedonic tests were conducted in common room setting (r=0.49), or as the post-consumption test at home (r=0.73). Further research is required on sensory procedures relevant for the elderly, which together with some other nonsensory factors, would give a better prediction of consumption.     

Emotional responses to branded and unbranded foods

Investigating the emotions elicited by a product considering only its sensory characteristics or both its sensory characteristics and packaging/branding can give a deeper insight into product perception and can help companies in the design and optimisation of products that meet consumer expectations. The aim of this study was to (i) measure how liking changes across blind, package (expected) and informed conditions, and (ii) measure how emotions change across blind and informed conditions, in products representing the widest range of sensory variability and brand identity in the market category of hazelnut and cocoa spreads. In the first session participants (n = 120) tasted each product in a blind condition, expressed their liking and rated emotions using the EmoSemio questionnaire specifically developed for this product category (Spinelli, Masi, Dinnella, Zoboli, & Monteleone, 2014). Then consumers were asked to rate their expected liking for the products, presented in the original packaging by means of photos (pack/expected condition). After one week, consumers tasted each product presented with its own packaging (informed condition), expressed their liking and rated emotions.Emotions were very discriminating in both conditions: in the informed condition all the emotions significantly varied across samples, while in the blind condition 21 out of 23 (91.3%) varied.Results showed a correlation between liking (blind, expected and informed) and emotions. Complete assimilation of liking toward expectations was associated to an overall improvement of the emotional performance of the product: positive emotions increased in the case of complete assimilation towards the expectations, while negative emotions decreased. When there was a mismatch between expected liking evoked by packaging and blind liking (disconfirmation) but an assimilation effect was not found, some positive emotions significantly decreased in the informed condition compared to the blind one.This study suggests the importance of collecting emotion responses in both blind and informed conditions to detect changes in the emotional profile of products due to the brand/packaging providing information useful for product optimisation.     

The use of immersive technologies to improve consumer testing: The role of ecological validity,context and engagement in evaluating coffee

Traditionally, sensory consumer testing is completed in isolated sensory booths where the influence of non-product (e.g., environmental) attributes is controlled. However, these highly controlled environments strip away meaningful contextual (visual, auditory and olfactory) information important in forming consumer perceptions, liking and behaviors. Moreover, boredom and lack of panelist engagement associated with typical testing paradigms can result in uninformative or misleading consumer data. We utilized an immersive environment depicting a virtual coffeehouse, replete with visual, auditory and olfactory cues found regularly in this setting, and compared liking scores for five coffees to those obtained from the same individuals in a traditional testing environment in which contextual information was absent. We found significant differences in preference order and liking for coffees evaluated by the same people in the two settings and showed hedonic data collected in the virtual coffeehouse to be more discriminating and a more reliable predictor of future coffee liking unlike data collected in traditional sensory booths. Additionally, we found consumers to be more engaged in the testing when evaluating coffees in the virtual coffeehouse, an outcome that likely also contributed to improved data quality. These results suggest that during product evaluations, extrinsic contextual information is processed simultaneously with the intrinsic product attributes to influence hedonic assessments and shape reward outcomes. Further, these results suggest that methodological changes to current testing strategies have the potential to improve the reliability of consumer data providing food and consumer product companies significant savings on product development costs and failed launches.     

The effect of the research setting on the emotional and sensory profiling under blind,expected, and informed conditions: A study on premium and private label yogurt products

Although sensory and emotional evaluation of food products mostly occurs in a controlled laboratory environment, it is often criticized as it may not reflect a realistic situation for consumers. Moreover, products are mainly blind evaluated by participants, whereas external factors such as brand are often considered as key drivers of food choice. This study aims to examine the role of research setting (central location test versus home-use test) and brand information on the overall acceptance, and sensory and emotional profiling of 5 strawberry-flavored yogurts. Thereby, private label and premium brands are compared under 3 conditions: blind, expected, and informed (brand information). A total of 99 adult subjects participated in 3 sessions over 3 consecutive weeks. Results showed that overall liking for 2 yogurt samples was higher in the laboratory environment under the informed evaluation condition, whereas no effect of research setting was found under the blind and expected conditions. Although emotional profiles of the products differed depending on the research setting, this was less the case for the sensory profiles. Furthermore, brand information clearly affected the sensory perception of certain attributes but had less influence on overall liking and emotional profiling. These results indicate that both scientists and food companies should consider the effect of the chosen methodology on ecological validity when conducting sensory research with consumers because the laboratory context could lead to a more positive evaluation compared with a home-use test.     

Effect of expectations and the definition of product category on the acceptance of unfamiliar foods

Expected and actual acceptance of three unfamiliar vs. three familiar foods were examined among US subjects to determine the extent to which positive information about their origin, nutritional properties and flavor, in the presence or absence of product category information, contributed to their acceptance. Subjects (n=160) were divided into the following four conditions: (1) ‘NOI' Unfamiliar foods, no verbal information; (2) ‘INFO' Unfamiliar foods, positive information without product category; (3) ‘INFO+' Unfamiliar foods, positive information including product category; and (4) ‘CTR' Familiar foods, no information, control group. The subjects rated their expected liking/disliking prior to tasting (based on information in conditions 2 and 3, and based on appearance in all conditions), their actual liking, and the degree to which the foods matched/mismatched their sensory and hedonic expectations after tasting. Generally, positive information enhanced ratings of unfamiliar samples, but product-specific information effects were large, and no proof was obtained for the superiority of the INFO+ (compared to INFO) condition in the enhancement of liking. Actual liking was best predicted by expected liking based on either verbal information or on seeing the product. The expected liking was mainly predicted by the degree of liking and frequency of use of the specific familiar reference products. Thus, the acceptance of an unfamiliar food is largely determined by how it relates to familiar foods that are part of an individual's current diet.     

The effect of consumption context on consumer hedonics,emotional response and beer choice

The context of a consumer test affects participant response. Data collected in a sensory laboratory is likely to have little predictive value of consumer experience in real-life situations. This study determined the effects of context on consumer response to two commercial beers. Regular beer consumers (n = 100) rated liking and emotional response using ten beer-specific emotion categories for two beers (Lager and Ale) under three different conditions: (1) a sensory testing facility (Lab), (2) a natural consumption environment (Bar) and (3) using an evoked context (Evoked). Their choice of product to take home was also recorded. Overall results showed significant product differentiation for liking (F (99, 2, 1) = 8.46, p = 0.004) and product choice (Q (1, N = 100) = 4.85, p = 0.028) in the Bar but not in the Lab or Evoked context. Emotional variables highlighted significant product differentiation (p < 0.05) but more so in the Bar than in the Lab or Evoked context. However, clustering participants on liking revealed three distinct clusters differing in sensitivity to context. Two clusters showed opposing but consistent preference for one of the two products regardless of context. The third cluster was more influenced by context, showing a more discriminating response in the Bar. These findings showed that consumers differ in their degree of context-sensitivity and the extent to which evoking a context gives similar results to a real environment. They also highlighted the importance of segmentation and confirmed the added insights gained by measuring emotional response compared to liking.     

Co-acting strangers but not friends influence subjective liking and facial affective responses to food stimuli

In recent years, consumers' emotional responses have been found to be an important complement to sensory and hedonic evaluations for the prediction of food choice and consumption behaviour. Given this trend, it is essential that the influence of contextual variables on emotion are investigated. The present study contributes to the discussion with an investigation of the effect of social context on implicit emotional responses to food images. 87 participants (56 female, 31 male) viewed food images of varying acceptability either alone, with a stranger, or with a friend. Subjective liking ratings were measured using a labelled affective magnitude scale, and facial muscle activity from zygomaticus major (contracted during smiling), corrugator supercilii (contracted during frowning) and levator labii superioris (contracted during nose wrinkling) were measured with an EMG recording system. Controlling for individual differences in facial expressivity and food image acceptability using linear mixed models, it was found that the presence of a co-acting stranger facilitated muscle activity indicative of a disgust response, increased the strength of relationship between muscle activity and subjective liking ratings, and led to lower subjective liking overall. No differences in muscle activity or subjective liking were found between subjects who participated alone and with a co-acting friend. This suggests that the influence of social context is complex, where the relationship between the subject and the social environment can impact both hedonic and emotional evaluations of food stimuli. These findings indicate that facial EMG can be a useful dynamic and implicit measure of emotion in consumer research, but it is critical to consider the social context of the testing environment.     

Implementing immersive technologies in consumer testing: Liking and Just-About-Right ratings in a laboratory,immersive simulated café and real café

Initial research indicates that the use of immersive technologies may improve the predictive validity and reliability of liking scores in consumer testing. However, how immersive technologies impact Just-About-Right ratings is hardly known. Forty-five participants took part in three tasting sessions, each in a different context: 1) laboratory, 2) immersive context simulating a café using audiovisual cues, and 3) real café. Each session, participants tasted four tomato soups varying in salt content preceded by a warm-up sample. Liking, optimal levels of sensory attributes (JAR) and engagement were measured. Results showed that there were no differences in liking or JAR ratings on sensory attributes of the soups across the three contexts. Nevertheless, participants felt more engaged in the real café and simulated café than in the laboratory. These results contribute to a better understanding of how sensory differences as assessed in a laboratory or immersive context relate to sensory differences that consumers would notice when they use the products in real-life.     

Creating memorable products: Actual liking and remembered liking

Product choice is influenced by the remembered liking for that product at the time that the choice is made. Little research has been carried out on memory for the liking of foods, and yet remembered liking at the time of purchase may be more influential on choice than liking ratings obtained during actual product consumption. A recent study examines how liking ratings made during consumption are integrated to produce an overall remembered evaluation. Its results enable quantifying differences between actual and remembered liking experiences.

Introduction

Product choice is partly influenced by the remembered liking for that product at the time of consumption. The relationship between actual and remembered liking has received almost no attention in the food literature. How do my hedonic responses, made ‘on-line’ as I consume the product, become integrated to form a holistic retrospective memory? If we understood this process, we could design products so as to maximize remembered liking in order to ensure repeat purchase and use.From pain research it is known that the pattern of the pain intensity interferes with memory: an acute pain pattern with a peak just before the end of the pain experience scores higher on remembered pain intensity than a chronic pain pattern with no peak at the end (the so-called ‘peak-at-end effect’; Ariely, 1998 and Kahneman et al., 1993). The present study was an initial attempt to extrapolate these negative effect findings from pain research to the positive affective experiences in the food domain. We hypothesised that products that deliver the maximum of the sensory stimuli at the end (peak-at-end rule) of the eating experience will score higher on remembered liking than products that follow a constant or a different liking pattern. The food product used was a crunchy cheese snack filled with soft processed cheese. The cheese filling varied in salt and cheese flavour intensity (Low and High) to examine four different sensory patterns: (1) a high constant pattern, (2) a low constant pattern, (3) a peak-at-end pattern and (4) a drop-at-end pattern (see Table 1).     

Colour and shape of design elements of the packaging labels influence consumer expectations and hedonic judgments of specialty coffee

Packaging plays an important role on attracting the consumers’ attention and creating hedonic and sensory expectations, which may affect actual product experience. The present study aimed at investigating whether the colour and/or shape of design elements of packaging labels would influence sensory and hedonic judgments of specialty coffee by amateur consumers. Participants (n = 174) first evaluated their expectations of coffee acidity and sweetness by looking at the coffee package, and subsequently, their experience of the same attributes when tasting a cup of coffee, in addition to rating their liking and purchase intent. The experiment followed a 2 × 2, between-subject design for label type (green or pink, round or angular), and the same coffee was served to all participants. Multivariate analysis of variance was conducted in order to assess main effects of colour and shape of the design elements of the packaging labels as well as interactions on sensory and hedonic ratings. Both colour and shape significantly affected consumers’ sensory expectations (pre-tasting ratings) regarding the specialty coffee, but they had no significant effect on post-tasting (actual perception) sensory ratings. Interactions between colour × shape were found to affect the hedonic measures. The coffee associated with the congruent labels (i.e., angular/green or the round/pink) received higher liking and purchase intent ratings than the one associated with the incongruent labels (i.e., angular/pink and the round/green). The implications of these results for the design of coffee packaging that convey some functional benefit as well as possible directions for future research are discussed.     

Influence of Package Visual Cues of Sweeteners on the Sensory‐Emotional Profiles of Their Products

Substantial evidence suggests influence of color, physical state, and other extrinsic features on consumer perception and acceptability of food products. In this study, 560 subjects evaluated liking and emotional responses associated with 5 sweeteners (sucralose, stevia, saccharin, aspartame, and sucrose) under 2 eliciting conditions: control (brand name only) and informed (brand name/packet image), to assess impact of the packet color. For a given condition, 5 identical tea samples each labeled with a sweetener type were rated for sweetness and overall liking (9‐point) and emotions (5‐point). Nonsignificant interactions between eliciting condition and sweetener type were found for liking attributes and emotions (except peaceful), indicating their independent effects. However, overall differences existed among sweetener types and eliciting conditions based on both hedonic and emotional responses (MANOVA, P < 0.05), suggesting modulating effects of packet color on sweetener type in the sensory‐emotion space. The sensory‐emotion profile for sucrose was separate from that of nonnutritive sweeteners, with statistically significant Mahalanobis distances among sample centroids. Increases in positive emotion intensities contrasted with a decrease in negative emotion intensities were observed for some sweeteners moving from the control to informed condition. Sweetness liking was strongly correlated with the emotion satisfied (sucralose, saccharin) only in the control condition, whereas it was strongly correlated with the emotions pleased and satisfied (stevia), disgusted (aspartame), and satisfied (sucrose) only in the informed condition. Overall, results suggested that sensory liking and emotions during the consumption experience are related not entirely to the type of sweetener, but also the color of the packet.