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Can children perform descriptive analysis? |
M. SWANEY-STUEVE, International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc., 150 Docks Corner Rd., PO Box 439, Dayton, NJ 08810-0439 As the demographics of families have shifted, working parents are allowing children to help with the food purchasing decisions. This transition has resulted in developing new foods targeted toward children, as the industry realizes the purchasing power of this market segment. Until this study, in the published literature, children have been used only for preference and discrimination sensory evaluation experiments. Sensory scientists continue to use adults for descriptive analysis procedures. Yet, with a shift in target audience, the question arises if the children and adults perceive the food products similarly. This experiment was performed to (1) determine if children could perform descriptive analysis, (2) compare descriptive terms generated by children of different ages and adults, and (3) to compare descriptive analysis results among the different groups. Children (8-10, 13-14, and 16-18 years) performed the task of descriptive analysis, finding differences among the products and consistently rating the attributes across replications. The three children panels, college panel (inexperienced adults) and experienced adult panel perceived many of the same attributes within the samples. The inexperienced and experienced adult panels perceived and rated the products the most similarly. The children’s panels differed slightly from the two adult panels, particularly on specific attributes. From this study, one can assume that children older than eight years can perform descriptive analysis. Panelists of all ages seemed to detect the same major sensory components within the samples. The groups yielded similar results in overall performance and individual panelist performance. One may conclude that sensory scientists can continue using adults for descriptive analysis of children’s products.
Session 38, The truth about kids: Update to testing with children
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