It's all in the timing: The effect of a healthy food cue on food choices from a pictorial menu

Feeling well surrounded: Perceived societal support fosters healthy eating

Societal resources (e.g. recreational facilities, free online information, healthy food retail) are consistently found to be important facilitators for healthy eating. In the current research, we propose that healthy eating is not only facilitated by the actual available support in society, but equally well by individuals' subjective perception on how helpful the provided support truly is. We refer to the latter as "perceived societal support" and examine how this influences healthy eating. Across two experimental studies, we observe that perceived societal support positively affects healthy eating: People who perceive the available support as helpful are more likely to choose healthy food over unhealthy food (study 1) and consume less from an unhealthy food product (study 2) compared to people who perceive the available support as less helpful. These findings do not only contribute to existing literature on societal support and healthy eating behavior, but also provide important policy implications.

The effect of spatial separation on food and drink choices from an online menu

Emerging research suggests that modifying the presentation context of healthy food items can subtly 'nudge' individuals to make healthier choices. The present study aimed to investigate the effect of spatial separation between high and low nutritional value items on food and drink choices from an online fast-food menu. Participants (N = 210 women) were presented with one of three pictorial menus in which high nutritional value food and drink items were presented spatially mixed, grouped, or separate from low nutritional value items. Participants were asked to make one selection from each menu category (a main, drink, and dessert), and then completed a measure of dietary restraint. Overall, there was no main effect of menu condition. However, dietary restraint status moderated the effect of menu condition on healthy choices. In particular, women who scored low (but not those who scored high) on dietary restraint were positively influenced by the experimental manipulation, making approximately 14 % healthier selections when high nutritional value items were presented separately from low nutritional value items. This was principally the case for desserts, and to a lesser extent drinks. The findings have practical implications for the design of online fast-food menus to promote healthier food and drink selections.

Instagram-based priming to nudge drink choices: Subtlety is not the answer

Instagram-based priming (e.g., subtly incorporating healthy drinks into the background of Instagram images) could potentially nudge healthier consumption behaviours. Given the negative health consequences associated with sugar-sweetened-beverage consumption, two experiments tested the effect of three sets of Instagram-based primes for nudging drink choices from a visual food and drinks display. Participants (18-25 years) were randomly assigned to view a series of Instagram advertising images (for technology, travel, or homeware products) that included a glass containing water (water prime) or cola (soft drink prime), or no drink (control). They then selected an item from the visual display containing snack foods and drinks. In Experiment 1 (n = 493) beverages were subtly incorporated into the priming images; in Experiment 2 (n = 471) beverages were made more prominent. Priming condition did not predict choice in Experiment 1 but did so in Experiment 2, where participants in the soft drink prime condition were significantly more likely to select a drink versus a food, compared to those in the water prime and control conditions. The water prime did not predict choice in either study. A greater percentage of participants noticed the beverage primes in Experiment 2 than in Experiment 1. Overall, it appears that when clearly visible, soft drinks incorporated into Instagram-style images can nudge drink choices. However, a less subtle approach may be needed to effectively encourage healthier drink choices.

The effect of a healthy food cue on choices from an online fast-food menu

The prevalence of unhealthy food cues in our environment is a major contributor to poor dietary behaviours. Emerging research has shown that changing the food environment through the co-presentation of a healthy food cue may subtly 'nudge' individuals towards making healthier choices. The present study aimed to investigate the effect of a healthy food cue on subsequent food and drink choices from an online fast-food ordering menu. Participants (N = 291 women) were first presented with a cue displaying either a healthy or unhealthy meal, or no cue control. They were then shown a pictorial menu with items presented in one of two orders - menu 1 (first item healthy), menu 2 (first item unhealthy) - and asked to choose one item from each of three sections (mains, drinks, desserts). Participants also completed a questionnaire measure of dietary restraint. Overall, participants made more healthy choices from menu 1 than 2. For menu 1, there was a significant interaction between experimental condition and restraint status, whereby restrained eaters made relatively more healthy choices following the healthy cue. This was particularly the case for 'main' meal items. The findings have real world implications for digital businesses on how to present food and drink items to nudge individuals towards healthier choices.

The effect of item placement on snack food choices from physical and online menus

Previous attempts to promote healthy eating using explicit techniques have not been consistently successful. We therefore investigated an implicit strategy (item placement techniques) to encourage healthy food choices in the context of snack menus. Two experimental studies compared presentation of healthy items in the top, middle, and bottom sections of a snack menu. Study 1 compared these presentations in a physical paper-based menu, while Study 2 used an online menu. Menus consisted of 8 unhealthy and 4 healthy items, arranged in three rows of four in Study 1, and one column of 12 in Study 2. In each study, participants selected one food item from one of the three experimental menus, before completing the Revised Restraint Scale (to determine dietary restraint status). In Study 1 (n = 172), item placement condition did not predict healthiness of food choice. In Study 2 (n = 182), healthy items were most popular from the first section of the menu, in comparison to the middle or last sections. Dietary restraint did not moderate the effect of item placement condition on food choice. In line with nudging principles, our results suggest that item placement techniques could be a potentially powerful tool in promoting healthy choices from online snack menus.