Perceptual and Preference Mapping

Perceptual and preference mapping is a family of multivariate techniques that simultaneously positions competing objects—brands, products, or stimuli—and respondent preferences within a common low-dimensional space. Introduced systematically by Hauser and Koppelman (1979), the approach lets researchers visualize how consumers perceive attribute-level similarities among objects and which attributes drive individual or segment-level choice. It is widely used in market research, sensory science, and strategic positioning analysis.