Social influences on eating behaviours

Question 1

Why are lab-based food studies criticised?

Answer 1

They often don’t reflect everyday eating experiences.

Question 2

Name three factors that influence the development of eating habits.

Answer 2

Direct food experiences, exposure to social/cultural patterns, and knowledge from nutrition education.

Question 3

What develops as a result of habitual food selection and consumption?

Answer 3

Expectations around food.

Question 4

What did Blass et al. (2006) find about TV vs. music during meals?

Answer 4

Watching TV led to greater food intake than listening to music.

Question 5

How does distraction impact food memory?

Answer 5

it can impair food memory, leading to increased subsequent intake (Higgs & Woodward, 2009).

Question 6

What did Hetherington et al. (2006) find about food variety and intake?

Answer 6

Food-related distractions, such as variety, increase intake.

Question 7

What is social facilitation in the context of eating?

Answer 7

The tendency to eat more in the presence of others.

Question 8

How much more did people eat in groups compared to alone (de Castro, 1997)?

Answer 8

44% more.

Question 9

What is the “time extension hypothesis”?

Answer 9

Eating with others increases meal duration, leading to greater food intake without altering eating rate (Pliner et al., 2006).

Question 10

How does eating with strangers compare to eating with friends?

Answer 10

People eat more with friends than with strangers (Clendenen, Herman & Polivy, 1994).

Question 11

What are descriptive and injunctive norms?

Answer 11

Descriptive norms reflect perceived prevalence, while injunctive norms reflect perceived expectations.

Question 12

What did Hawkins, Farrow & Thomas (2020) find about Facebook users’ food perceptions?

Answer 12

Perceived norms of fruit and veg consumption predicted participants’ own consumption.

Question 13

What did Nisbett & Storms (1974) find about confederates’ influence on intake?

Answer 13

Participants’ food consumption was influenced by the intake of confederates.

Question 14

What strengthens the modelling effect?

Answer 14

Perceived similarities or shared identity with the model (Cruwys et al., 2015).

Question 15

What is impression management in eating behavior?

Answer 15

Adjusting food choices and intake to create a desired impression in a social context.

Question 16

What did Lipschitz & Herman (2010) find about threats to masculine identity and food choices?

Answer 16

Men ate more meat when their masculinity was challenged.

Question 17

How does White and Dahl (2006) support Lipschitz and Herman (2010)

Answer 17

Males more motivated to avoid feminine foods (Chefs cut vs Ladies cut)

Question 18

What is social comparison theory (Festinger, 1954)?

Answer 18

People adjust their behavior, including eating, based on comparisons with others.

Question 19

What did Polivy, Herman & Deo (2010) find?

Answer 19

People ate more when they perceived they received less food than others. (Social comparison theory, Festinger 1954)

Pizza slice study

Question 20

How does the “Situated Identity Enactment Model” explain disordered eating?

Answer 20

Disordered eating arises from being in a context where group norms endorse such behaviors.

Question 21

What three factors influence eating in this model?

Answer 21

Norms, social identity, and context.