Comparison of bipolar and bivariate measurements of liking and disliking percepts in novel products

• Consumers have both liking and disliking percepts rather than neutral perception.
• Bipolar and bivariate measurements show similar sample discrimination performance.
• Bivariate measurement shows supplementary interpretation for consumer preference.

The relationship between several positive and negative percepts has been demonstrated by psychological studies to be more bivariate than bipolar. The objective of the study was to compare the liking and disliking ratings generated from two unidirectional scales to a modified 9-point hedonic scale ratings to identify similarities and dissimilarities in the findings from the two different scaling methods. Three consumer acceptance tests were conducted with the 9-point liking and disliking unidirectional scales (LDUS) and the modified 9-point hedonic scale. The tested food products were soy-whole-grain beverages, Korean rice wines, and high protein snacks. Subjects demonstrated to have both liking and disliking percepts in the evaluation of novel food products. Only about 2% of the subjects had neutral perception by indicating “no opinion” on both LDUS. Statistical comparisons between the modified 9-point hedonic scale ratings and the LDUS ratings produced similar sample discrimination performance. Internal preference maps from the LDUS ratings provided supplementary interpretations by showing consumers’ like patterns and dislike patterns toward samples separately.