Non-verbal evaluation of acceptance of insect-based products using a simple and holistic analysis of facial expressions
Résumé
The aim of our study was to assess consumers’ non-verbal reactions to insect-based products and to evaluate if consumers who had never eaten insects before had flavor expectations.
To achieve our objective we used flavored potato chips presented either as “protein enriched” or as “insect protein enriched” products. Hundred consumers participated in the study according to a between-subject design. The flavors were chosen according to a pre-test survey about insect flavor expectations: strawberry and blackcurrant were selected as “incongruent” flavors, chicken and barbecue as “congruent” flavors.
The products were tasted while consumers were videotaped. An innovative coding method was used to process the non-verbal data: the duration and valence (positive or negative) of each expression as well as exploratory behavior were coded. Additionally the international positive and negative affect schedule short-form (I-PANAS-SF) was used and liking was evaluated for each product.
Just before eating the product, consumers in the insect condition showed significantly longer negative expressions than consumers in the control condition. During eating, consumers in the insect condition expressed shorter positive reactions. However chips presented as insect-based products were also associated with higher positive affect scores and no difference was found in liking. Congruent flavors generated significantly more negative expressions, higher negative affect scores and lower liking scores than incongruent flavors, but no interaction was found between these flavors and the insect information.
Consequently we can conclude that consumers reject the idea of tasting chips but seem to accept it after the first bite, indicating that western society might be willing to take a first step towards insect consumption, at least as processed food.