This paper critically discusses the status quo of consumer research in the sensory industry. Based on a case study in the oral care category, the presenters advocate a rethinking of current research paradigms in the industry and suggest an interdisciplinary and multi-perspective angle on 'researching the senses'. While criticising current sensory research, the presentation at the same time calls for 'researching with all senses' as the future leitmotif and concept of research at large.
This paper provocatively questions the 'depth ethos' so often determining today's qualitative research. The psychological primacy in qualitative research can be a barrier to generating inspiring and valuable insights by disregarding consumer reality as superficial and 'untrue'. The authors advocate an approach that generates insights via a thorough understanding and interpretation of the supposed 'obvious', combining the perspectives of ethnography, cultural analysis and linguistic learnings as a starting point for contemporary qualitative research. While not claiming the death of psychology-oriented research, the authors stress other valuable approaches outside the principle of 'going deeper'.