Environment and Behavior · 2006 · 614 citations · 34 references
Social SciencesPsychologySocial PsychologyExperimental PsychologySocial CognitionSocial PerceptionBehavioral Decision-makingEating BehaviorsEnvironmental PerceptionFood ChoicesFood ConsumptionFood EnvironmentConsumer Attitudes Toward FoodConsumer Food Decision-makingEating ContextEating-related CognitionsFood Choice DecisionsFood Choice Under UncertaintyFood Environment Perception
The study investigates how aware people are of the food-related decisions they make and how environmental cues influence those decisions. The authors examined 192 participants, manipulating environmental cues such as a large bowl, which led to overserving and a 31 % increase in food intake. The findings show that participants underestimated their food-related decisions by over 221 on average, overate 31 % more when exposed to exaggerated cues, yet only 4 % attributed the increase to the cue, underscoring limited awareness and reluctance to acknowledge environmental influence.
How aware are people of food-related decisions they make and how the environment influences these decisions? Study 1 shows that 139 people underestimated the number of food-related decisions they made—by an average of more than 221 decisions. Study 2 examined 192 people who overserved and overate 31% more food as a result of having been given an exaggerated environmental cue (such as a large bowl). Of those studied, 21% denied having eaten more, 75% attributed it to other reasons (such as hunger), and only 4% attributed it to the cue. These studies underscore two key points: First, we are aware of only a fraction of the food decisions we make. Second, we are either unaware of how our environment influences these decisions or we are unwilling to acknowledge it.
34
Food Choice: A Conceptual Model of the Process
Tanis Furst, Margaret Connors, Carole A. Bisogni et al. · Appetite · 1996 · 1.2K citations · Full text