Understanding Consumers' Perception of Different Fish Species Marketed in Brazil using Word Association

Authors: Santana APP , da Silva HLA , Salim APAA* , Mano SB and Ferreira MS

DOI: 10.23880/oajar-16000293

Volume 7, Issue 2

Abstract

Word association (WA) is a qualitative technique widely used to understand how consumers perceive food products. The aim of the present study was to investigate the consumer's perception (n = 300) regarding five different fish species marketed in Brazil and to elucidate whether the perception is affected by the consumption frequency using the WA task. Samples of the panga, tuna, salmon, tilapia, and hake were utilized in this study. Different perceptions were identified for both frequent and occasional fish consumers. Among 17 categories elicited to describe the fish species, almost all categories presented significant differences in the frequency of mention according to the chi-square per cell approach (p ≤.001). The conceptualization of each species of fish was strongly affected by the frequency of consumption of this matrix. The findings from the present work provided a insight into Brazilian consumers' perception of fish meat, which can be used to develop strategies to increase the commercialization of these species in the Brazilian market.

Keywords: Fish Meat; Projective Techniques; Consumer Studies; WA

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