Journal of Sensory Studies最新文献

Emotion knowledge involves the ability to recognize and express emotions and understand emotional processes. The neural substrates of emotion knowledge include i.a. the amygdala, orbitofrontal cortex, and anterior cingulate cortex. These structures are also involved in processing olfactory stimuli and their volume and functional activity have been shown to increase after a period of regular olfactory stimulation (olfactory training, OT). We verified if OT will improve one aspect of emotion knowledge — the ability to match emotional facial expressions. Eighty-three children (39 boys) aged 6–9 years were randomly assigned either to an OT group (OTG) that smelled a set of four odors (lemon, cloves, eucalyptus, rose) twice a day for 12 weeks or to a placebo group that performed the training with odorless stimuli. Children in the OTG (n = 40) matched emotional facial expressions significantly better after OT as compared with their baseline score. This effect was not present in the placebo group (n = 43) whose scores remained the same after OT.

Practical applications

This novel finding suggests the potential of olfactory stimulation in supporting emotion knowledge in children and bridges recent findings in sensory studies, psychophysiology, and emotional development. Further studies are necessary to delineate which aspects of emotion knowledge might be enhanced by OT. In future, OT might be potentially included in programs designed for groups with specific emotion knowledge deficits.

Crossmodal strategies have been proven to be useful to enhance sweetness perception, although, in general, the segmentation of consumers is not an essential part of this kind of research. The aim of the present study was to determine if a set of crossmodal strategies could be useful to modify sweetness perception in three different age groups: young, middle-aged, and senior adults. A butter cookie and a milkshake sample were reformulated (appearance and aroma of both samples, and the mouthfeel of the milkshake) to assess liking and perception of overall flavor and sweetness intensities. Results suggested that adding a sweet-related aroma enhanced sweet taste/flavor intensity, without affecting liking ratings, for all the studied age groups. Liking and the ratings for flavor and sweetness intensity were significantly different among age groups, but no interactions “sample x age” were identified, suggesting that crossmodal interactions were similar for all age groups.

Practical Applications

The growing demand for low-sugar foods has led food companies to reformulate their products, requiring research into the best ways to develop successful low-sugar alternatives. Research on potential crossmodal interactions is useful to guide companies to attend consumers' demands, but there is a lack of information on how to adapt the most successful strategies to each consumer segment (beyond cross-cultural studies). Results of the present research include interesting data on three different consumers' segments and their perception of two kinds of products in which cross-modal strategies were used to reformulate a control sample: a solid food -exemplified using a butter cookie- and a beverage -exemplified using a milkshake-.

Well-being (WB) is defined as a healthy state of mind and body. It consists of mental, physical, and social domains. In our everyday life, we perceive millions of odors from our environment, which have a role in social communication, protecting us from the environmental hazards and in our quality of life. A lot is known about the association between olfaction and depression; however, the relation between WB and olfaction remains unexplored. In the study, we reanalyzed 122 healthy subjects (mean age of 26 ± 3 years; 58 men/64 women). WB state was examined using the 42-item, General habitual well-being questionnaire and olfactory sensitivity was assessed using the Sniffin' Sticks test. We found out a significant positive correlation between the WB and olfactory sensitivity r₁₁₉ = .21, p = .023. Therefore, it is evident that even in healthy subjects, there exist a positive relationship between the sense of smell and the WB state. This connection may offer valuable insights into potential indicators of future mental health conditions.

Practical Applications

The sense of smell plays a critical role in establishing social connections, including kin recognition and the development of sexual relationships. Olfactory loss serves as an early indicator for depression. Likewise, in individuals without apparent health issues, assessing smell function can serve as a potential precursor for identifying mental health conditions. Consequently, it is advisable to integrate smell testing into routine medical simulation training.

Ninety-eight (n = 98) military personnel from the Brazilian Army Special Operations Forces (SOF) participated in 10 Focus Groups to discuss the suitability of Combat Operational Rations with the service doctrine. The operational rations provided partially meet the operational and doctrinal demands of the SOF. Although the military personnel felt secure with the rations provided, the need to customize kits with locally sourced food items before the start of the mission and complaints about the excessive packaging volume were the categories that showed the highest level of engagement. The insights obtained for improving the rations indicated the need for adjustments in palatability, menu variety, modularization, practicality, and an increase in the nutritional content of macro and micronutrients. Further studies should be conducted in partnership with military technical sectors and strategic defense companies to assess the feasibility of developing rations better aligned with the SOF doctrine.

Practical Applications

Addressing the challenges identified in the Rations used by the Brazilian Army Special Operations Forces (SOF) is crucial for improving the readiness and performance of elite military units and offers valuable insights for academic research. This benefits the academic community by demonstrating the real-world relevance of nutrition science, food technology, and logistics in military settings. Furthermore, the collaboration between military technical sectors and strategic defense companies presents an opportunity for industrial innovation. Companies involved in producing and supplying rations can use these findings to develop more suitable, efficient, and cost-effective products tailored to the unique demands of SOF units.

This study aims to investigate the product categorization and characterization of makgeolli (Korean rice wine [KRW]) among beer and wine samples. Projective mapping with ultra-flash profiling (PM with UFP) (n = 68) was conducted with 12 alcoholic beverage samples, including wines, beers, and makgeolli, and showed that participants characterized wine based on fruitiness, beer on bitterness, and makgeolli on sourness. s showed that PM with UFP had a combined explained variance of 47.4% with beer, wine, and makgeolli grouped separately. However, when participants were separated based on wine knowledge, low wine knowledge participants placed Shiraz close to makgeolli indicating participants were using a different metric in grouping the alcoholic beverage samples. When participants were tasked with using polarized sensory positioning (n = 91) to characterize makgeolli and wines, participants regardless of wine knowledge showed that wine and makgeolli had unique sensory traits and thus should be categorized differently.

Practical Applications

Research on KRW (makgeolli) is relatively limited in Western societies and this study attempts to understand how participants categorize makgeolli in New Zealand among different alcoholic beverages using projective and characterizing methods. Based on the categorization theory, it is important to position the product properly in the food and beverage categories as consumers may use the category cues to evaluate makgeolli and use products such as beer or wine within the same category as price anchors for makgeolli's price in the market. The results showed that participants categorize makgeolli differently compared to wine and beer; therefore, it would be beneficial to position makgeolli separately. Practical applications may include creating a separate section on a restaurant beverage menu, a webpage on an alcoholic beverage seller's website, or a small sub-section on the retail store shelf. Placing makgeolli in the wine section as previously suggested is not recommended.

The increased demand for home meal replacement (HMR) foods due to demographic changes requires research focusing on sensory evaluation. This study compares consumer acceptance, sensory profile, and emotional response of HMR based on test conditions (central location test; CLT or home-use test; HUT) and cooking methods (microwave or pan cooking). The sensory evaluation involved 204 panels, and significant differences were observed in acceptance ratings between CLT and HUT (p < .05). Texture liking was the only significantly different attribute between cooking methods (p < .05). Sensory profiling indicated highly similar characteristics across test conditions and cooking methods. Emotional responses varied depending on the test conditions and cooking methods. In the HUT, positive emotions such as ‘active,’ ‘enthusiastic,’ and ‘happy’ were stronger than those in the CLT (p < .05). Active and positive attitudes such as ‘adventurous,’ ‘aggressive,’ ‘enthusiastic,’ ‘interested,’ and ‘wild’ were stronger in microwave cooking than in pan cooking (p < .05). The results showed that the ‘IKEA effect’ exists in the self-cooking process, leading to higher liking scores and positive emotions in the HUT compared to the CLT, while intrinsic sensory qualities of the samples were unaffected by external factors, test conditions, and cooking methods.

Practical applications

Our research findings provide practical cooking guidelines for food developers who aim to enhance consumers' acceptance and evoke positive emotions during HMR food cooking. In addition, it was shown how the cooking process affects the evaluation of the products in liking, sensory profiling, and emotional responses by comparing CLT and HUT conditions.

This research aimed to investigate the occurrence and prevalence of possible changes in the sensory perception of individuals who presented total or partial loss of smell or taste when infected by SARS-CoV-2, comparing the results with those of individuals who were not diagnosed with the disease and did not show typical symptoms of the infection. One hundred volunteers were recruited, of whom 50 were from the group of people who had COVID-19 and had signs of smell or taste dysfunction (COVID group), and 50 were from the group of people who did not have the disease and did not show symptoms of the disease (Control group). Gustatory tests were performed to evaluate four primary tastes: sweet, salty, sour, and bitter, and olfactory tests were performed to assess odors: coffee, pineapple, lime, and cinnamon. To determine the detection and recognition thresholds, three-alternative forced-choice sessions of tastes and odors were carried out, and intensity scales were used to verify the sensory perception of the participants. Significant differences were confirmed between the groups (Control and COVID) for the detection and recognition thresholds for all tastes and odors. Sour taste was significantly affected in terms of detection and recognition, suggesting that COVID group shows lower sensitivity concerning this taste. Pineapple odor was the most difficult of being recognized by COVID group. The intensity attributed to the stimuli by the COVID group were lower than those of the Control group and differed statistically at the highest concentrations. Data show that individuals in COVID group remained with gustatory and olfactory alterations in sensitivity, detection, and recognition capacity.

Practical Applications

This research demonstrated the prevalence of symptoms of sensory-processing disorders related to gustatory and/or olfactory functions in individuals who tested positive for COVID-19, even after been cured of the infection. They had sensory alterations in terms of detection and recognition capacity, as well as sensitivity. In practice, several factors associated with quality of life are impaired due to sensory-processing disorders, such as food, personal hygiene, safety, and physical or mental illnesses, which lead to a necessity of monitor these individuals as these factors are related to public health.

This study investigated the effects of repeated exposure on acceptability, emotional responses, and purchase intention of a novel symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY) ice cream, compared to a control (no extra additives) and a guar gum ice cream sample, using three sessions: a survey (SCOBY information) and two tasting sessions (repeated-exposure effect). Participants initially conducted blind evaluations of all samples, followed by an informed tasting. The blind tasting sessions evoked high arousal emotions for the SCOBY ice cream and positive emotions for the control and guar gum samples. The second session showed a rise in liking for sweetness (5.6–6.5) and texture (5.6–6.7) of the SCOBY samples. Sensory attributes such as flavor (odds ratio = 1.7) and texture (odds ratio = 1.7), coupled with positive emotions such as “happy” (odds ratio = 3.8), “pleasant” (odds ratio = 0.4), and “interested” (odds ratio = 3.8) affected purchase intention. The findings of this study provide valuable insights into participants' liking and emotional responses during repeated exposures to stimuli.

Practical Applications

The study's findings show that repeated exposure to novel products enhances consumer acceptance and emotional responses, challenging the current formats of traditional sensory studies. This implies that the introduction of novel products can be successful with repeated tasting exposure strategies. The focus on improving familiarity with sensory attributes, especially flavor and texture, can positively impact purchase intention. This insight can guide product positioning, marketing campaigns, and flavor development efforts, encouraging the successful integration of innovative products into the market.