When the music stops: Crossmodal effects of sounds on taste do not explain changes in liking

Abstract

Environmental sounds influence taste perception and liking of food because eating is a multisensory experience that integrates all senses. The present study investigated how a dark chocolate ganache with two different levels of added sugar was perceived when sounds corresponding to sweet and bitter tastes were played, as well as no sound. A total of 515 participants rated the balance of sweet and bitter tastes using just-about-right (JAR) and the overall liking using a hedonic scale. Results show that the bitter sound increased the perception of bitterness of both ganache and the sweet sound increased the perception of sweetness of the higher-sugar ganache. Although not always significant, both sounds had positive effects on liking, even when they exacerbated tastes already in excess and pushed them further from the ideal. These results indicate that the sounds were effective in influencing sensory perceptions of ganache, but their effects on liking did not come from taste improvement, most likely from sensory-emotional stimulation. Together with previous studies that found significant effects of sound in perception of taste, aroma, and texture, but not in liking, this study adds evidence on the importance of environmental sounds in eating contexts and propose that crossmodal effects of sound and liking are independent processes.