Betina Piqueras-Fiszman

• PhD
• Professor (Assistant) at Wageningen University & Research

This article constitutes a state-of-the-art review of the literature on the effects of expectations on the sensory perception of food and drink by humans. In the ‘Introduction’, we summarize the theoretical models of expectations that have been put forward. In the ‘Empirical research utilizing direct methods’ section, we describe the influence that...

It is often claimed that colour (e.g., in a meal) affects consumption behaviour. However, just how strong is the evidence in support of this claim, and what are the underlying mechanisms? It has been shown that not only the colour itself, but also the variety and the arrangement of the differently-coloured components in a meal influence consumers'...

The present study utilized the techniques of eye tracking and word association in order to collect attentional information and freely-elicited associations from consumers in response to changing specific attributes of the product packaging (jam jars). We assessed the relationship between the data obtained from these two measures in a non goal-direc...

A crucial aspect of food science is how humans perceive, describe, and respond to foods’ various sensory properties. It is wrong to believe that data provided by humans are mere subjective opinions that differ widely. In this chapter, we discuss an array of proven, robust, and reliable techniques that can be used to measure and collect a food’s sen...

p>This work examines the associated emotions of consumers transmitted from extrinsic attributes (fat‐related nutrition claims (full‐fat, low‐fat, and fat‐free) and ingredient features (plain, berries, and double chocolate chunk)) labelled on yoghurt packages. It differentiates by consumption context (health versus indulgent) at the time of the surv...

Purpose While research shows that organic labels are perceived positively for most food products, the findings are more ambiguous for wine. This may be due to the complexity of the product. Accordingly, the labelling effect might be influenced by people's prior knowledge of wines and their attitudes towards organic wines and thus be more pronounced...

Throughout our lives, we develop a system that helps us navigate in a food environment. In a routine where we are constantly thinking about food and making choices, ranging from whether we actually want to eat, through the selection of a food category and portion size, to eventual consumption, it is worth highlighting that many of those microdecisi...

Consumer characteristics such as age, gender and ethnicity influence food oral processing behavior. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of age, gender and ethnicity on consumption time, bolus properties and dynamic sensory perception of sausages. Consumption time, bolus properties (saliva incorporation, particle size distribution and...

The addition of food particles to food matrices is a convenient approach that allows to steer oral behavior, sensory perception and satiation. The aim of this study was to determine the influence of physical-chemical properties of heterogenous foods on oral processing behavior, bolus properties and dynamic sensory percep- tion. Bell pepper gel piec...

Addition of particles to foods, such as fruit pieces to dairy products or vegetable pieces to soup, is a convenient approach to alter nutritional composition, appearance, perception and acceptance. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of addition of peach gel particles to yogurt on oral behavior, sensory properties and liking of cons...

This study investigated whether the addition of macroparticles or fat can be used to compensate for negative texture sensations in quark. Cellulose beads were added as model microparticles (1.5% w/w; average size: 263 µm) to quark (0% fat) to induce unpleasant gritty sensations. The addition of microparticles to quark significantly increased gritti...

The current research focused on the (in)congruity between pictorial (ingredient item depiction) and textual (ingredient list) information on food packaging, namely, an apple–mango juice. Specifically, the influence of these information sources on expected and perceived flavor intensities, mismatched perceptions, perceived deception, and intention t...

This study explored how product familiarity and physiological characteristics of participants affect detectability of microparticles in viscous and semi-solid foods. Cellulose particles differing in size (50-780 µm) were added (1.5% w/w) to two dairy products, quark (viscous curd cheese) and processed cheese. Discrimination thresholds for added mic...

This study investigated how exteroceptive and interoceptive cues influence sensory perception and liking of novel, heterogeneous foods. Twelve heterogeneous cheeses were prepared by adding bell pepper pieces to homogeneous processed cheese matrices. Bell pepper pieces differed in size, hardness, and concentration. Consumers (n=73) evaluated cheeses...

This study investigated the effect of mechanical contrast and particle flavour concentration of carrot particles added to soups on expected and perceived sensations and liking. The properties of a chicken...

In recent years there has been an emerging body of research looking into the psychological mechanisms underlying food consumption and eventually modulating energy intake. This chapter reviews the empirical evidence demonstrating how everything from the label of a food and the properties of the container, through to the variety of the components of...

This chapter provides an overview of the theories explaining the mechanisms behind automatic behavior, focusing in particular on implicit associations with food items. We explain the implicit association test (IAT), which is the most widely used procedure to capture "internal" associations. We describe its advantages and limitations in consumer res...

Visual elements of food products can play an important role in determining food choice through shaping the attributes perception of consumers. Symbols and logos have the role of conveying information, but they can be interpreted in different ways. The product used as a case study is Extra‐Virgin Olive Oil. The elements tested are: color of the bott...

Color is perhaps the single most important product-intrinsic sensory cue when it comes to setting our expectations regarding the likely taste and flavor of food and drink. To date, a large body of research has demonstrated that changing the hue or intensity/saturation of the color of a variety of different food and beverage items exerts a sometimes...

In this chapter, we highlight the crucial role played by the oral-somatosensory attributes of food and drink in determining our perception, and hence our enjoyment, of many of our most preferred foods and drinks, as well as our dislike of certain others. However, beyond the multisensory textural properties of the food itself, and beyond the tempera...

The Rate-All-That-Apply (RATA) method, an intensity-based Check-All-That-Apply (CATA) variant, has recently been developed for sensory characterization involving untrained panellists. The aim of this study was to investigate the sensory profiles of ten model (double) emulsions with subtle perceptual differences obtained from the Rate-All-That-Apply...

The use of double emulsions (w1/o/w2) has been acknowledged as a promising strategy to reduce oil content in several food applications. Despite the potential of double emulsions for oil reduction, their sensory properties have not been investigated. In this study, we investigated sensory perception of double emulsions by descriptive sensory profili...

Our memories of past eating experiences are influential in shaping food preferences and consumption behavior, and the emotions that people associate to these memories are linked to their attitudes toward foods and their everyday food-related behaviors. This work studies the impact that food-related memories have on peoples’ emotional state and how...

The increasing average life expectancy and overall percentage of the older population is leading to a growing interest in healthy aging. Thus, there is a demand for flavourful, and pleasant foods, rich in certain nutrients, targeted at older consumers. In order to be able to tailor foods to older consumers wants and needs, it is necessary to invest...

Consumers associate emotions to meal occasions and understanding these can advance knowledge of food-related behaviours and attitudes. The present study used an online survey to investigate the emotional associations that people have with recalled meals: ‘memorable’ (MM) and ‘routine’ evening (RM). Heterogeneity in the studied consumer population (...

Multisensory Flavor Perception: From Fundamental Neuroscience Through to the Marketplace provides state-of-the-art coverage of the latest insights from the rapidly-expanding world of multisensory flavor research. The book highlights the various types of crossmodal interactions, such as sound and taste, and vision and taste, showing their impact on...

Why use open-ended questions? This chapter provides an up-to-date overview on the use of open-ended questions in novel rapid sensory methodologies and the potential applications in which they could provide unique benefits. Next, the step-by-step process is described (from task performance to analysis) with its pros and cons, with important consider...

The remembered satisfaction and enjoyment of eating occasions can influence future meal choice decisions, but past research into how meals are positively and emotionally remembered and what contributes to such memorability is scarce. The aim of the present study was to draw on the tripartite conceptualisation of ‘the food’, ‘the context’ and ‘the p...

In consideration of the widespread use of check-all-that-apply (CATA) questions in sensory and consumer research, the investigation of how the panel performs in this methodology is deemed necessary. Checking the reliability of this type of data is relevant, mostly in situations where, as a rapid method, it is obtained from consumers and in less con...

Have you ever wondered whether the atmosphere of a restaurant can influence the taste of the food that you eat? The music, the lighting, the aroma/fragrance and even the temperature all contribute to establishing the feel of a restaurant. However, while many people intuitively believe that the environment in which they eat has little direct influen...

Sensory incongruity ? the deliberate mismatching of the sensory attributes of one or more of the elements in a dish ? has become an increasingly common phenomenon in many of the world's top experimental kitchens and modernist restaurants in recent years. In this chapter we examine the causes and consequences, both intentional and otherwise, of this...

Praise Page Half-Title Page Title Page Copyright Page Table of Contents Foreword Preface

Get the opening wrong and there's no way to recover. Haven't we all been there, invited out for a celebratory meal, you sit down and immediately ‘know’ it is going to be mediocre at best and terrible at worst. In this chapter, we take a closer look at the start of the perfect meal, covering everything from the social aspects of dining through to th...

Would ‘snail porridge’ ever have created such a stir had the dish been given a different name? And why has Chilean sea bass become such a popular item on the menus of many a fancy restaurant nowadays? The naming and labelling of food plays an important role in determining how a diner will respond to them, both in terms of the food choices that they...

On most occasions, not having cutlery available on the table while dining would make us feel as though something was missing. That is, cutlery has become yet another ubiquitous element in our everyday eating experiences (part of the dining script, if you will), in whichever corner of the globe we happen to find ourselves. But cutlery, in the same w...

Figure 2.3 Figures 3.1, 3.2, 3.3 Figures 4.2, 4.5, 4.7, 4.8, 4.9, 4.11, 4.12 Figures 5.3, 5.4, 5.5, 5.6 Figures 7.2, 7.3, 7.4, 7.5, 7.6, 7.7, 7.8 Figures 8.1, 8.3 Figures 9.1, 9.2, 9.3 Figure 10.5 Figures 11.1, 11.2, 11.3, 11.5

An increasingly popular trend in recent years has been the growing number of dining-in-the-dark restaurants. This raises a number of interesting questions relating to gastrophysics and the new sciences of the table. First, and most relevant in the context of this book, does food really taste better if you turn the lights off? Second, does dining in...

In this, the penultimate chapter, we highlight some of the various ways in which digital technologies are increasingly going to influence, and possibly even transform, our fine dining experiences (not to mention our everyday interactions with food and drink) in the years to come. We distinguish between several uses of technology in this regard, for...

It is well known that people serve themselves more, not to mention eat more, when dining from larger bowls and plates than from smaller ones. But what about the other visual qualities of the plateware? Does the colour, shape and finish also influence a diner's behaviour? How important are these extrinsic visual properties, or even the visual arrang...

At a time when a growing number of chefs and innovative food industries are starting to set up their own research kitchens and work with renowned scientists, it is surprising to see that issues related to the visual presentation of food on the plate are being left out of these successful exchanges. The variety of presentations created by chefs, and...

We present rich descriptions of taste experience through an analysis of the diachronic and synchronic experiences of each of the five basic taste qualities: sweet, sour, salt, bitter, and umami. Our findings, based on a combination of user experience evaluation techniques highlight three main themes: temporality, affective reactions, and embodiment...

Wanting and rejecting food are natural reactions that we humans all experience, often unconsciously, on a daily basis. However, in the food domain, the focus to date has primarily been on the approach tendency, and researchers have tended not to study the two opposing tendencies in a balanced manner. Here, we develop a methodology with which to und...

The last few years have seen a rapid growth of research interest in the study of the role of touch and oral-somatosensation in the experience of eating and drinking. The various ways in which the sense of touch can be used to enhance the diner’s/consumer’s experience in both everyday eating and drinking, as well as in the context of experiential di...

Nowadays, more and more importance is given to how restaurant dishes are visually presented. With regard to the color of the plate, several recent studies have demonstrated that identical foods served on plates (or in containers) of different colors are often perceived differently at both the sensorial and hedonic levels. However, to date, these ef...

The product design process involves intensive manipulation of graphical data, from pencil sketches to CAD files. The use of graphic software is common among professionals in this field. Despite this, the conceptual design stage remains intensive in paper and pencil work, as CAD systems are still too rigid to allow a creative production of concepts....

What occurs in a physical properties and sensory research laboratory is relevant to food developers, chefs, and others working in the hospitality/culinary sector as well as to any curious food lover. Thanks to the contributions of science, the latest food innovations are percolating through to the dining rooms of restaurant managers who want to imp...

In this article, we highlight some of the various ways in which digital technologies may increasingly come to influence, and possibly even transform, our fine dining experiences (not to mention our everyday interactions with food and drink) in the years to come. We distinguish between several uses of technology in this regard: For example, to enhan...

The last decade or so has seen the steady rise of the 'Dine-in-the-dark' or 'Dans le noir' restaurant, where diners pay to eat and drink in complete darkness. Why are these restaurants popular? Addressing this question requires consideration of several others, such as: Does food really taste better in the dark? And, does dining in the dark provide...

The last few years have seen the rapid development of a range of novel packaging technologies that are currently enabling many companies to engage in radical innovation in terms of the multisensory packaging of their food and drink products. Consequently, more and more companies are now starting to introduce new coatings and packaging formats to th...

Most of the published research on the perception of food texture has focused on what happens in-mouth during consumption. It is, however, important to note that people’s judgments of food texture can also be influenced by other sensory cues, such as haptic input, be it their direct contact with the food, or possibly also their indirect contact with...

Research has demonstrated that the physical attributes of the containers from which we eat and drink can influence our perception of various foods and beverages and the overall consumption experience. In the present study, we extended this line of research in order to investigate whether the consumer's perception of a hot beverage (namely hot choco...

We report a study designed to investigate consumers’ crossmodal associations between the colour of product packaging and flavour varieties in crisps (potato chips) among Colombian and British consumers, using two methods. In a modified version of the Implicit Association Test (IAT), the stimuli consisted of green and blue coloured packets and the f...

We report a study designed to assess whether there is any ‘weight’ to the claim that better (or, at the very least, more expensive) wines come in heavier bottles. A field study was conducted in an independent wine retailer in which we looked for correlations between weight, price, and a range of other explanatory variables. The data concerning 275...

We report the results of a quick and simple online questionnaire designed to rapidly assess the crossmodal correspondences that exist between the oral-somatosensory experiences associated with still and sparkling water and certain colours (blue, red, or green) and shapes (organic vs. angular). The results of this online data collection technique pr...

Currently little is known about how the non-edible items associated with eating and drinking (tableware items such as the plates, bowls, cutlery, glasses, bottles, condiment containers, etc.), or even environmental factors (such as the lighting and/or background music), affect people’s perception of foodstuffs. Here, we review the latest evidence d...

We report a study designed to investigate the influence of the weight of the container on expected satiety prior to tasting the food within and on the perceived density of the food and any feelings of fullness expected to follow consumption (expected satiation). The results demonstrate that the contents of a heavier container are expected to be mor...

This study investigated the effect that the taste of certain metals has on the perception of food. Four spoons plated with different metals (gold, copper, zinc, and stainless steel) were used to taste cream samples having different tastes: sweet, sour, bitter, salty, and plain. The results revealed that the zinc and copper spoons, in addition to tr...

Our perception of food is affected by the sensory properties of the food itself, together with our expectations about the food and other contextual factors. The latter are especially relevant in the restaurant setting, where appearance factors, such as the presentation of the food on the plates can dramatically affect food liking and consumption. H...

This paper looks at possible reasons for the intentional (or, on occasion, accidental) use of sensory incongruity (confounded expectations) which has become increasingly common in the food and beverage sectors in recent years.

Most of the published research on the perception of food and drink has focused on what happens in-mouth during consumption. It is, however, important to note that people’s judgments are also profoundly influenced by other sensory cues, such as haptic input, be it their direct (oral-somatosensory) contact with the food itself, or their indirect cont...

In many categories, weight has been found to influence how users perceive and appraise products. However, to date, the influence of the weight of the dish in which food is served on people’s perception has not been studied empirically. This exploratory study was therefore designed to investigate whether the weight of the container would exert a sig...

Our perception of food depends both on the contextual conditions in which it is presented and on the way the food is consumed; hence, the current trend toward investigating these contextual variables in empirical research. In most meal situations, people interact with the food that they consume by means of a variety of accessories, such as dishes a...

We report a study designed to investigate consumers' crossmodal associations between the color of packaging and flavor varieties in crisps (potato chips). This product category was chosen because of the long-established but conflicting color-flavor conventions that exist for the salt and vinegar and cheese and onion flavor varieties in the UK. The...

The flavour and pleasantness of food and drinks are affected by their colour, their texture or crunch, and even by the shape and weight of the plate or glass. But, can the colour of the bowl also affect the taste of the food it contains? To answer this question we served popcorn in four different coloured bowls, and participants rated sweetness, sa...

In this competitive world, a package has only a few seconds to make an impact and catch the consumer's eye. In that time, a successful label should communicate its message and convince the shopper. Considering the importance of transmitting an adequate, and in some occasions, the “perfect” message, it is crucial to understand how consumers perceive...

Knowledge of how older users perceive products and how this perception affects acceptance is important since they are a consumer sector with real growth potential. Within this context, the aim of the present study was to analyze how two age cohorts of users perceive products of different familiarity grade (mobile phones and watches), using check-al...