Texture perceived with the fingers

Relative assessments of 10 attributes commonly used to describe the texture of liquids on skin were obtained for 14 liquids of widely varying rheological properties. The results were analyzed to show that these judgments can be predicted accurately from the assessments of just three attributes, smoothness, thinness, and warmth. Smoothness was found to be closely related to the forces of contact lubrication, and could be predicted from measurements of coefficients of friction. Thinness was found to be closely related to viscous forces, consistent with other predictions of assessments of thickness and spreadability. Warmth was not studied further. The results show how careful definition of the stimulus on the skin's surface can sharply simplify the interpretation of the psychophysical experiment.