Virtual Reality and Immersive Environments on Sensory Perception of Chocolate Products: A Preliminary Study

Abstract

Traditional booths where sensory evaluation usually takes place are highly controlled and therefore have limited ecological validity. Since virtual reality (VR) is substantially interactive and engaging, it has the potential to be applied in sensory science. In this preliminary study, three chocolate types (milk, white, and dark) were evaluated under three contextual settings, including sensory booths (control) and two VR environments (360-degree videos using VR headsets: (i) a pleasant sightseeing tour, and (ii) a live music concert). Untrained participants (n = 67) were asked to rate their liking and the intensity of different chocolate attributes based on the 9-point hedonic scale and just-about-right-scale (JAR). Emotions were evaluated using the check-all-that-apply (CATA) method. Results showed that there were no significant effects of context type on the tasting experience; however, there were significant effects of chocolate type. Milk and white chocolates were preferred over dark chocolate irrespective of the context type. Additionally, more positive emotions were elicited for the dark chocolate in the “virtual live concert” environment. Dark chocolate under the other two environments was associated with negative emotional terms, such as “bored” and “worried.” In terms of more reliable and ecologically valid sensory responses, further research is needed to match suitable VR environments to different chocolate types.

Self-Reported Emotions and Facial Expressions on Consumer Acceptability: A Study Using Energy Drinks

“…Indeed, 50-70% of newly launched food products do not last long in the market [1], despite their intensive market research. Sensory and consumer sciences provide a few tools in this context [2][3][4][5] to better understand products [6][7][8][9] and population categories [10], and to minimize the risk of failure [10,11]. One of the most popular and extensively used methods to quantify affective responses in sensory science is the acceptability test using the nine-point hedonic scale [12].…”

Exploring the Effects of Immersive Virtual Reality Environments on Sensory Perception of Beef Steaks and Chocolate

“…As a result, there is considerable interest among researchers in investigating ways to evoke consumption contexts during the sensory evaluation of foods, with the aim of improving the ecological validity of consumer data. To date, several different approaches have been proposed including written, imagined or image depicted scenarios [ 4 , 7 ], the creation of an immersive environment, such as a beach [ 8 ] or café [ 9 ], and the use of virtual reality technology [ 10 , 11 , 12 ].…”

“…The use of virtual reality (VR) technology to simulate immersive contextual settings for hedonic testing is becoming an increasingly popular study area in sensory science (see Crofton et al [ 13 ] for a review describing recent advancements in virtual and augmented reality and their potential application in sensory science). Research comparing consumer responses generated in immersive VR environments and sensory laboratory settings have been recently reported for a range of food products, including chocolate [ 11 ], tea break snacks [ 14 ], cheese [ 15 ], and alcoholic beverages [ 10 , 12 ]. Consumer hedonic ratings were found to change depending on the context for some products [ 12 , 15 ], but not others [ 10 , 11 ], although this may be explained by the different environmental contexts used across these studies.…”

“…Research comparing consumer responses generated in immersive VR environments and sensory laboratory settings have been recently reported for a range of food products, including chocolate [ 11 ], tea break snacks [ 14 ], cheese [ 15 ], and alcoholic beverages [ 10 , 12 ]. Consumer hedonic ratings were found to change depending on the context for some products [ 12 , 15 ], but not others [ 10 , 11 ], although this may be explained by the different environmental contexts used across these studies. Outside of academia, the food industry are exploring ways VR technology can be used to customise a unique multisensory experience for their consumers.…”

Food Consumption and Emotions at a Salad Lunch Buffet in a Multisensory Environment

“…Zandstra et al reported a consumer study of tomato soup comparing tasting sessions in three different contexts: in a laboratory, an immersive simulated café and a real café [ 14 ]. A virtual reality eating environment was used in consumer studies evaluating snack products and emotions [ 15 ] as well as chocolate products and emotions [ 16 ]. To our knowledge, food consumption at a salad buffet in a multisensory environment has not been studied previously.…”