Consumer Testing
Phillip A. Bopp
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QUANTITATIVE TESTING IN ACTION:
The information below is from an actual quantitative test carried out at Oregon State University. The test was designed to see if age and or sex had a significant bearing on the taste preferences between regular apple juice, unfiltered apple juice, and apple cider. The test was carried out during a Nutrition class and all students participated. The hypothesis to be tested was that young women would prefer regular apple juice for the light sweet taste while young men would prefer the unfiltered apple juice because of its thicker consistency and less sweetened taste. The test for such a hypothesis is very simple. Samples of the three juices were poured into tasting cups and identified by a set of random three digit numbers. The panelists were then asked to fill out their personal information on the scorecard while the samples were passed out. The panelists then tasted each sample and answered two basic questions on the scorecard as to their favorite and their least favorite. Pictures from the test are shown below to better understand the testing set-up. The scorecard that was used is in Figure 1. The information from these scorecards could then be used to help understand the apple juice market and what groups of people drink what kinds of juice.
Fig 1.
PERSONAL INFORMATION DATA/SCORECARD
Please circle the most accurate answer for each question.
Gender: M F Age: 18-25 26-30 31-35 36+
Which sample do you prefer the most? 523 960 147
Which sample do you prefer the least? 523 960 147
Comments about your preferences or dislikes:
Updated 8/29/97. Send mail to Food Resource, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR.