The role of immersive environments in the assessment of consumer perceptions and product acceptance: A systematic literature review

• Published in: Food quality and preference 2022-07, Vol.99, p.104490, Article 104490
• Main Author: Schöniger, Martina Katharina
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Conceptual framework; Engagement; Immersive environment; Lab environment; Natural consumption environment; Product acceptance
• ISSN: 0950-3293; 1873-6343
• DOI: 10.1016/j.foodqual.2021.104490

•Review of immersive environment (IE) research on food evaluation.•Presenting a conceptual IEs framework.•Quality assessment of IEs (liking scores, engagement scores, product discrimination, and reliability of results).•Compared to the lab environment, applying IEs tend to be beneficial in sensory research.•Providing guidance for practitioners on how to apply IEs. Immersive environments (IEs), which allow consumers to fully experience a real or artificial environment, have recently gained importance in new food products’ evaluation. IEs aim to increase isolated sensory booths’ external validity. In this article, we review the implementation of IEs and provide an overview of state-of-the-art IE research studies on food evaluation. Although recent literature reveals various IEs, we propose a conceptual IE framework. Current studies’ conflicting results lead to the question whether applying IEs in food evaluation is actually beneficial. We, therefore, assess IEs’ quality compared to that of lab and natural consumption environments by focusing on the differences in their liking scores, in their engagement scores, product discrimination, and the reliability of their results. In terms of these aspects, IEs’ application seems to be beneficial compared to research in a lab environment, since it tends to show results that are similar to those that a natural consumption environment provides. Focusing on practical applications, we summarize the issues that researcher should consider when implementing IEs. In addition, we describe directions for future research on IEs when used in food evaluations.