[Psychologic study of experienced coffee effect]

Abstract

In dealing with the psychological effects of coffee a distinction is drawn between three components of the subjective or experimential effect: the primary effect, which relates to the perception of the coffee beverage; the secondary effect, which stems from the ergotropic effect of coffee; and the tertiary effect, which is due to visceral sensations and which is a major contributor to the experience of digestability and wholesomeness. Results pertaining to these three components, their interaction, and their correlation with physiological and behavioral effects of coffee are discussed. The variability of research findings relating to the secondary effect is explained on the basis of the psychological activation theory. Relevant motivational, attitudinal, and moderator effects, which psychological coffee research will have to take into account, are described. Methods already available for psychological coffee research, including suitable techniques of experimentation and measurement, are presented together with three illustrative examples.