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J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 26 497-508 (1975) ¸ 1975 Society of Cosmetic Chemists of Great Britain The promise and the product J. B. WILKINSON* The 1975 Medal Lecture delivered before the Society of Cosmetic Chemists of Great Britain on 6th March 1975 with Miss A. Young, President, in the Chair. Synopsis---The responsibility of the cosmetic scientist to the public at large is reinforced by LEGAL codes requiring a product to match its promise to the CONSUMER. The discipline of Evaluation Science has grown to meet the need and now covers an increasingly scientific field of physical PERFORMANCE criteria examples are discussed. The influence of emotional satisfactions must, however, be given adequate weight and the interactions of product per- formances in the emotional and physical fields provide a great challenge to cosmetic scientists the problems are discussed. THE THEORY OF EVALUATION Research moves under two pervasive influences: the scientific urge to know and the pressure, or suction, from the environment in which the research worker lives and breathes. History provides so many examples of glorious resonance of the science and the need, the man and the hour, that it seems curious to question the hypothesis. Yet science put to the benefit of the public-at-large is seen by some scientistsqand perhaps by some of the public--as a prostitution. And the scientist of this persuasion, forced by harsh economics to earn his living, thus is ever ill-at-ease. Conversely, how happy the research worker who finds these two in- fluences in phase and who has to do no 'reconciliation'--at least on these matters. This is surely the situation of those who work in one of the most difficult and advanced areas of cosmetic science--that of Evaluation Science. The scientific urge required is certainly multi-disciplinary--perhaps better described as non-disciplinary. The scientists themselves may have started life as physicists, bacteriologists, statisticians or chemists. All these disciplines are needed at times, yet evaluation problems, like all real-life * Research Division, Unilever Limited, Unilever House, London EC4P 4BQ. 497