Determining individual variation in ability to discriminate: factors affecting responsiveness and performance

This chapter provides an overview of the main factors affecting individual differences in oral and olfactory responsiveness, including gender and age, fungiform papillae, responsiveness to PROP, oral tactile acuity and psychological traits. Factors affecting consumer and trained panelists ability to discriminate across products will be also discussed. In fact, in addition to inter-individual differences in taste and odour responsiveness, other factors may influence individual responsiveness and ability to discriminate; the role of familiarity and training will be discussed in this context, together with aspects related to attention and other cognitive processes such as memory and emotions. Lastly, aspects related to panel composition and environmental conditions of the tests will be recalled.