A multi -country citizen -science study on what makes us enjoy a cup of coffee

Abstract

Many coffee preferences are known, but studies that comprehensively integrate simultaneous contributions to coffee enjoyment are lacking. An online citizen -science questionnaire designed to identify those factors associated with momentary coffee liking, surveying demographics, extrinsic/intrinsic qualities, and coffee -related habits, is presented (N = 2,987; 5 continents; 7 languages; 11 countries; 77 nationalities). The results indicate a higher liking for coffee consumed black, during spring, in the morning, on Wednesdays, and from ceramic cups. Higher -priced coffee is appreciated significantly more, and liking -consumption quantity appears best -optimised at 4 –5 cups/day. Several key characteristics for coffee -dislike are evident: waking -up late, drinking from a cup with a lid on, at noon during autumn, with cream, and, potentially implying a possible coping mechanism for bitterness -disliking, adding sugar to coffee. These results constitute the first multi - country cross -context integration of momentary coffee liking and provide an empirical foundation for context -sensitive models linking sensory/behavioural/temporal factors in beverage preference research.