Does social-norm messaging influence expected satiety and ideal portion-size selection?

Abstract

A person's perception of how long a food will stave off hunger (expected satiety) and the ideal amount to consume (ideal portion size) are both influenced by food-to-mealtime norms. Here, we examine whether social norms can modulate this effect, in three experimental studies. In study 1 (n = 235) participants were exposed to a social norm suggesting most people enjoyed consuming pasta for breakfast. There was a main effect of food-to-mealtime congruence for expected satiety and ideal portion size (p < 0.001) – participants selected a smaller portion of pasta for breakfast (vs. lunch) – but there were no other main effects/interactions (p ≥ 0.15). Study 2 (n = 200) followed the same approach as study 1, but sought to examine whether the typical volume of food consumed at breakfast and lunch needed to be controlled. Again, there was a main effect of congruence (the same pattern) (p ≤ 0.02) but no other main effects/interactions (p ≥ 0.73). Study 3 (n = 208) followed the same approach as study 2, but the social-norm message was changed to suggest that most people who eat pasta for breakfast found it effectively reduced their hunger. Again, there was a main effect of congruence (the same pattern) (p < 0.001) but no other main effects/interaction (p ≥ 0.26). These studies provide further evidence for the food-to-mealtime effect, but do not provide any evidence that a single, simple social-norm statement can modulate expected satiety or ideal portion size, or interact with the food-to-mealtime effect.

Publication DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2023.107157
Divisions: College of Health & Life Sciences > School of Psychology
College of Health & Life Sciences
Aston University (General)
Additional Information: © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/bync-nd/4.0/).
Uncontrolled Keywords: Eating behaviour,Expected satiety,Portion size selection,Social norms,General Psychology,Nutrition and Dietetics
Publication ISSN: 1095-8304
Last Modified: 25 Nov 2024 18:04
Date Deposited: 18 Jan 2024 13:12
Full Text Link:
Related URLs: http://www.scop ... tnerID=8YFLogxK (Scopus URL)
https://www.sci ... 6193?via%3Dihub (Publisher URL)
PURE Output Type: Article
Published Date: 2024-02-01
Published Online Date: 2023-12-09
Accepted Date: 2023-12-05
Authors: McLeod, C. J.
Thomas, J. M. (ORCID Profile 0000-0001-7013-8994)

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