Evaluation of changes in perceived intensity and threshold of moisture sensation of clothes associated with skin moisture

Abstract

Moisture sensation is an important determinant of clothing comfort. Conventional studies have attempted to elucidate the mechanism behind moisture sensation by using wet sample cloths that vary by water content. However, these studies did not consider the impact of the moisture levels of the skin that makes contact with the samples. In this study, we investigated changes in skin moisture sensation in terms of perceived strength and detection thresholds, based on contact with sample cloths, given various skin moisture conditions. In the first experiment, participants reported their perceived moisture levels for sample cloths that varied in water content and temperature, after making forearm contact with each sample cloth. The result showed that participants felt small amounts of moisture when skin moisture was increased. In the second experiment, participants’ detection thresholds were evaluated using the staircase method, based on forearm-sample contact. The results showed that skin moisture did not affect the threshold of moisture sensation.