ROLE OF SENSORY AND COGNITIVE INFORMATION IN THE ENHANCEMENT OF CERTAINTY AND LIKING FOR NOVEL AND FAMILIAR FOODS

Expected and actual liking for novel and familiar foods were examined under various conditions of sensory and verbal information with 121 su bjects who differed in food neophobia. The possible mediating roles of uncertainty about product identity and resemblance to familiar foods were also investigated. Subjects were divided into three verbal inform ation groups (no information; product name; ingredient and use informa tion) balanced for neophobia, age and gender. All groups rated test sa mples under three sensory conditions: (1) appearance only, (2) appeara nce and smell and (3) appearance, smell and taste. Neophilics rated no vel foods more favorably than did neophobics. Accumulating sensory exp erience (appearance, smell, taste) decreased liking for novel foods bu t increased liking for familiar foods. Verbal information generally in creased liking for all samples. Liking and certainty of product identi ty were curvilinearly related for novel foods, but linearly related fo r familiar foods. Liking for products judged to closely resemble the t est product predicted up to 64% of the variability in expected and act ual liking. Eight weeks later, subjects rated one of the two novel foo ds higher than in the first exposure, but no other exposure effects we re observed. Our data suggest that information (possibly via reduced u ncertainty), resemblance to more familiar foods, and exposure contribu te to reducing initially negative responses to novel foods; furthermor e, neophobia decreases liking for novel foods similarly at all levels of sensory input (visual, smell and taste).