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Updated: Jun 21, 2026
09:17
Psychophysical Tracking Method to Measure Taste Preferences in Children and Adults
Published on: July 16, 2016
Implicit association between basic tastes and pitch
Anne-Sylvie Crisinel1, Charles Spence
1Department of Experimental Psychology, Crossmodal Research Laboratory, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3UD, UK. anne-sylvie.crisinel@psy.ox.ac.uk
Neuroscience Letters
|August 15, 2009
Summary
High-pitched sounds are linked to sour tastes, and low-pitched sounds to bitter tastes. This study reveals a crossmodal association between sound pitch and food flavor perception.
Area of Science:
- Food science
- Sensory science
- Crossmodal perception
Background:
- Food evaluation is influenced by sensory information.
- The impact of auditory stimuli on food perception is often overlooked.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate interactions between auditory stimuli and basic tastes (sour and bitter).
- To measure the association strength between sound pitch and food taste perception.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a version of the Implicit Association Test (IAT).
- Assessed response latency and accuracy to measure associations.
- Paired high-pitched sounds with sour food names and low-pitched sounds with bitter food names.
Main Results:
- A significant crossmodal association was found between sound pitch and taste attributes.
- Participants showed stronger associations between high pitches and sour tastes, and low pitches and bitter tastes.
Conclusions:
- Auditory stimuli significantly influence basic taste perception.
- Further research is needed on the multisensory integration of sound and food evaluation.
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