6533b870fe1ef96bd12cf09f

RESEARCH PRODUCT

A comparison between industrial experts' and novices' haptic perceptual organization: a tool to identify descriptors of the handle of fabrics

subject

description

Abstract In descriptive analysis, the establishing of the list of attributes is crucial. Attributes should account for consumers' perceptions and be understood by professionals for efficient communication. This work was aimed at identifying the most appropriate attributes for fabric description from the terminology associated with both experts' and novices' haptic perceptual spaces. Eleven industrial experts and two groups of novices (20 males and 20 females) evaluated 26 clothing fabrics. They performed (1) a free-sorting task based on haptic similarities, (2) a description of the previously formed groups, and (3) a hedonic rating task for each fabric. The perceptual organization was similar regardless of the level of expertise, but experts showed better abilities than novices in verbalizing their perceptions. The relevant dimensions of the haptic space were labeled: soft/harsh, thin/thick and supple/stiff. Although softness was strongly related to the hedonic dimension, its consensual use justifies its consideration in a profile. However, the description of soft fabrics should be refined by attributes such as slippery, downy and mellow. Experts consensually used the term nervous, whereas no equivalent concept was used by novices. It is suggested that this term should be included for comprehensive fabric description.