EFFECTS OF TESTING EXPERIENCE ON PERFORMANCE OF TRAINED SENSORY PANELISTS1

Abstract
Data from an inexperienced and experienced sensory panel with similar training were compared in two experiments, the first on a product class that the experienced panel had tested extensively and the second on a product class unfamiliar to either panel. This study indicates that inexperienced panelists having the same intensive descriptive training as their experienced counterparts can be used on the same panels as experienced testers with little effect on the data. The minimal experience effect found in both experiments in this study was not the result of experience in a specific product category, but appeared to be a more general effect. We hypothesize that thorough training may be more important than experience for increased “reproducibility” in panelists.