Factors Affecting Human Tactile Response to Wash-Treated Garments: Analysis of Fabric and Garment Effects in Dynamic Wear

This paper describes studies conducted to understand how a selected group of blouse materials contributed to tactile sensations on the human body during active wear; and to determine how the response was affected through wash treatment. Human subject hand evaluations and controlled garment wear studies were used to quantify subjective response to the tactile properties of materials that had been washed, starched, or softened. Fabric hand was analyzed using paired comparison and bipolar hand evaluation protocols. A novel human subject wear protocol was developed to assess material interactions with body location in dynamic wear. This study also shows how different protocols for subjectively evaluating tactile response were correlated in fabrics and garments that were deliberately washed, softened, or starched to achieve different levels of softness or stiffness.