Abstract:

Sensory perception of smell and taste treated in a broad sense, including aspects like memory and emotion, is discussed from a point of view that takes practical application in the field of market research into account. Sensory perception of smell and taste is characterized by the large individual differences between observers, its subconscious nature and a lack of verbal terms to describe perceptual experiences. Recent developments in the area of stimulus intensity stimulus quality and stimulus pleasantness and unpleasantness lead to the conclusion that many of the often used methods in consumer research may lead to FALSE conclusions and that it is wise to follow a double strategy in which consumers are only asked for their preferences and special descriptive panels are set up for the translation of these preferences into product.