Methods to Study Everyday Use of Products in Households: The Wageningen Mouthing Study as an Example

Several methods exist to study human behaviour in everyday life: e.g. an oral or written interview, measurement of physical variables and observation. All of them have their advantages and disadvantages, which are described in this paper. When a clear picture of actual human behaviour and information about an entire activity are required, for example to assess risks of exposure to chemical substances, it is best to use a combination of available methods. In this way the advantages of all methods can be combined. This was done in the Wageningen mouthing study of which some results are presented.