Story Completion technique: A useful methodology to evaluate the risk perception of consumers from different regions of Brazil about cheeses sold at open markets

Abstract

Story Completion technique was used to investigate the perception of consumers (n = 326) from different regions of Brazil about cheeses sold at open markets. Consumers were divided into low-risk (would buy the cheese) and the high-risk (would not buy the cheese) groups based on the outcome of the story. In the low-risk group, the consumers from North and Southeast regions would buy the products due to the quality and technology, while those from Northeast, Midwest, and South regions due to the sensory aspects. In the high-risk group, the consumers from the South region would not buy the cheese due to the hazard, and those from the Northeast region due to its negative sensory aspects. The consumers from the Southeast and South regions would not buy due to the lack of certification and quality, while those from the North and Midwest regions for not knowing the origin of the products. Practical applicationsThis was the first study to apply the Story Completion technique in a food-related study.This methodology demonstrated to be useful to separating the consumers based on their risk perception about cheeses sold at open markets. Furthermore, it was able to reveal differences in consumer perception about the products for each region of the country.

Elucidating the physicochemical properties and sensory acceptability of pineapple ( Ananas comosus ) drinks as influenced by dried sour plum concentrations

“…Therefore, the pineapple drinks with dried sour plum showed improved color, odor, sweetness, sourness, and flavor. In addition, the sensory methods based on consumer perception have been discussed by da Silva et al (2021).…”

A Preliminary Study on the Validity and Stability of Projective Methods: An Application of the Structural Approach of Social Representations with Traditional Mexican Cheeses

“…Likewise, the representations “Cheese and dairy products, Territory, Culture, Gastronomy and Family” are consistent with the results reported by Soares et al [ 43 ], who studied the perception of consumers towards Coalho cheese in Brazil and identified that it is a product associated with culture, particularly in the northeastern region, where consumers relate it to ingredients, forms of production, an accompaniment of typical dishes (gastronomy) and family. Although sensory aspects are the main factors that influence consumer perceptions of different types of cheese [ 43 , 44 , 46 , 66 ], other factors influence perception, such as packaging, production regions, places, consumption occasions, security aspects, price, processing technology or attitudes and feelings [ 46 , 66 ]. In the case of this research, although some cheese produced in the region was not used as a stimulus to extract consumer associations, it was observed that not only is the territory associated with cheeses and dairy products from the area, but also with cultural aspects, nature and landscape and tourist activities, among other extrinsic aspects that are associated with the territory in the representations of consumers.…”

More than words! A narrative review of the use of the projective technique of word association in the studies of food consumer behavior: Methodological and theoretical implications

“…Although associative techniques have been the most widely used to study food consumer behavior, in recent years other projective methods have been employed to study consumer perceptions, attitudes and preferences towards different food products (Viana et al, 2016;Sales et al, 2020;Sass et al, 2021, Penna et al, 2021Alcaire et al, 2021;da Silva et al, 2021;Goldner et al, 2021;Alencar et al, 2021).…”

“…to study the perception of consumers towards fruits and vegetables (Krumreich et al, 2019); cereals (Son et al, 2014;Dahiya et al, 2014;Bernardo et al, 2019;Rojas-Rivas et al, 2019), meat products (Viana et al, 2014;Graça et al, 2015;de Andrade et al, 2016;Ruby et al, 2016;da Rosa et al, 2019) and dairy products (Ares and Deliza, 2010a;Ares et al, 2010b;Oliveira et al, 2016;Soares et al, 2017;Pinto et al, 2018;Judacewski et al 2019;da Silva et al, 2021).…”