Bitter cold, sharp cheese and loud colours : the chromatic cacophony of cross-modal sensory perception

This thesis addresses the question of how a consumer's different sensory modalities interact to guide perception and decision-making. Specifically, in three studies, its primary objective is to investigate the cross-modal link between vision (colour) and touch. Colour has a profound influence on human perception. Not only does it cause changes in physiological or emotional states, it can shape what is perceived in other sensory modalities. However, the body of research on these “cross-modal” experiences has predominantly examined colour’s influence on taste and smell. Instead, Study 1 sets out to identify the cross-modal association between vision (colour) and touch (perceived texture of food). Results from Study 1 show colour influences 'perceived' texture of the food during consumption. The extant literature on cross-modal associations involving colour are heavily skewed to situation involving food consumption. To extend existing knowledge, Study 2 applies these cross-modal effects between vision and touch to an advertising setting, where colour is found to influence 'expected' texture. Finally, Study 3 examines the multidirectional nature of the colour-touch relationship, specifically whether touching a product influences perception relating to product colour. Findings from Study 3 demonstrate, under certain conditions, touch does have a cross-modal influence that shapes affective responses to colour cues. Together, the three studies provide further understanding of the cross-modal relationship between vision and touch, and demonstrate the existence of the cross-modal effect in different scenarios and with different products. ACCESS RESTRICTED TO ABSTRACT ONLY UNTIL 12/06/2020