| Abstract: | In master’s thesis, we focused on a problem rarely dealt with, namely, the field of taste perception and chocolate texture. Thus, we examined the influence of colour and material of package on the taste perception of chocolate more closely.
In the theoretical part of the master’s thesis, we gave an insight into the elements of the perceptual process (stimulus, sense organs, sensation, exposure, and attention). Elements of the perceptual process are of crucial importance for understanding the course of perception. The concept of package colour is one of the key concepts from the market’s viewpoint. Hence, the concept of package colour is defined as market stimuli by various authors, denoting either communication or physical stimulus, created in order to influence the consumer (Assael 1998 and Mubeen 2006). With the help of new materials, the role of the package is developed by the modern technology. Therefore, it is essential that the package exterior represent the first contact with the consumer and the interaction between the product and the consumer.
The most important research questions of the master’s thesis were the questions of influence of the colour of the package on the taste perception and chocolate texture, and the influence of material of package on the taste perception and chocolate texture.
In the thesis, we represented the model of connections between the following concepts: package colour, material of package, perception of taste and texture. The research model has been previously tested on a smaller sample of respondents, that is, on ten students of first and second year of the Master’s programme at the Faculty of Economics and Business. The purpose of the preliminary testing was to establish whether the respondents understood the poll questions and perhaps the modification of two surveys. The results of the preliminary testing have shown that the colour and the material of package do not influence the perception of chocolate taste and texture.
The main part of the research was conducted in May, when sixty students of first and second year of the Master’s programme at the Faculty of Economics and Business were tested. We provided ourselves the content validity of two surveys, based on which we performed the experiment in three groups (20 students participated in each group).
The results of the empirical part on the sample of sixty students of the Master’s programme at the Faculty of Economics and Business showed that a) the colour of package does not influence the perception of chocolate taste and texture, and that b) the material of package also does not influence the perception of chocolate taste and texture. At the end of the research, we wanted to establish whether different colours and materials of package influence the perception of taste and texture differently, which is why we performed an additional post-hoc analysis. We determined that among all groups there are, statistically, no differences (p > 0,05).
Despite our contribution, the results of our work present only a small part in the research field of perception of taste and texture. We can say that we uncovered, nevertheless, important information, that will help researchers with their work in the future. |
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