Abstract Sensory and consumer testing are primary strategies companies use to collect insights about consumer products. However, frequently, unreliable results from these tests can lead to failed product launches which can have enormous financial and/or brand equity consequences. One potential reason is sensory tasks are often deliberately devoid of additional stimulation which reasonably has the possibility to reduce a panelist’s engagement with the task. Engagement may drive involvement and focus during testing and help generate reliable data. The overall objective of this study was to develop (Study 1), refine (Study 2), and validate (Studies 3–5) an engagement questionnaire (EQ), a tool to empirically assess varying engagement levels with a task. Prior literature and an exploratory qualitative assessment through an online platform (Study 1, N = 87) were used to operationalize the dimensionality of engagement and develop a preliminary questionnaire consisting of 54 items covering 7 themes (ability, attention, passivity, involvement, interest, motivation, and relevance). To assess the effectiveness of the initial item set, participants recalled being engaged with a task and answered the preliminary EQ (Study 2, N = 186). Results collected underwent an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) in order to explore the dimensionality and refine the scale by strategically eliminating items. To validate the tool, the EQ was distributed following numerous consumer sensory tests that spanned a variety of food and beverage products, test lengths, number, and types of questions (Studies 3–5). EFA was conducted in Study 3 (N = 774), which resulted in a three-factor, 10-item model with good reliability (α = 0.856). The new model was subsequently validated in two additional consumer sensory studies (Study 4A, N = 416 and Study 4B, N = 446). Both validation studies produced acceptable to good model fit indices with an RMSEA below 0.07, SRMR below 0.04, both CFI and TLI above 0.95 and good reliability (α > 0.850). When tested in a different sensory testing facility, the EQ produced acceptable model fit indices (Study 5, N = 247) and tracked as expected with participants’ perceived workload collected using the NASA Task Load Index; confirming the content and convergent and divergent validity of the instrument. Such an instrument allows for deeper understanding of panelist engagement and its impact on data quality, enabling the design of sensory tests capable of generating more reliable data both within the field of food science and beyond.

中文翻译：

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参与问卷 (EQ) 的开发：一种在感官和消费者评估期间衡量小组成员参与度的工具

摘要 感官和消费者测试是公司用来收集有关消费品的见解的主要策略。然而，这些测试的不可靠结果经常会导致产品发布失败，从而产生巨大的财务和/或品牌资产后果。一个潜在的原因是感官任务通常故意没有额外的刺激，这合理地有可能减少小组成员对任务的参与。参与可以推动测试过程中的参与和关注，并有助于生成可靠的数据。本研究的总体目标是开发（研究 1）、改进（研究 2）和验证（研究 3-5）参与问卷 (EQ)，这是一种凭经验评估不同任务参与水平的工具。先前的文献和通过在线平台进行的探索性定性评估（研究 1，N = 87) 被用来操作参与的维度并开发一个初步问卷，由 54 个项目组成，涵盖 7 个主题（能力、注意力、被动、参与、兴趣、动机和相关性）。为了评估初始项目集的有效性，参与者回忆起参与一项任务并回答了初步的情商（研究 2，N = 186）。收集的结果进行了探索性因素分析 (EFA)，以便通过战略性地消除项目来探索维度和细化规模。为了验证该工具，EQ 在进行了大量消费者感官测试后分发，这些测试涵盖各种食品和饮料产品、测试长度、数量和问题类型（研究 3-5）。全民教育是在研究 3 (N = 774) 中进行的，这导致了一个三因素，具有良好可靠性的 10 项模型（α = 0.856）。新模型随后在另外两项消费者感官研究中得到验证（研究 4A，N = 416 和研究 4B，N = 446）。两项验证研究都产生了可接受的良好模型拟合指数，RMSEA 低于 0.07，SRMR 低于 0.04，CFI 和 TLI 均高于 0.95，并且具有良好的可靠性 (α > 0.850)。在不同的感官测试设施中进行测试时，EQ 产生了可接受的模型拟合指数（研究 5，N = 247），并按预期跟踪参与者使用 NASA 任务负荷指数收集的感知工作量；确认工具的内容和收敛效度和发散效度。这种工具可以更深入地了解小组成员的参与及其对数据质量的影响，