Effects of Information and Convenience on Healthy Eating Decisions

Presenter: Jessica Wisdom, Carnegie Mellon University

Abstract

In response to the increasing obesity epidemic in the US, a growing number of municipalities are introducing legislation requiring chain restaurants to display calorie information prominently on their menus. The ongoing legislative debate about such initiatives reflects an implicit belief that such changes in the availability of information will lead customers to change their purchasing behavior, evidenced by both the motivation behind the legislation and the resistance by many fast-food restaurants who fear that their business will suffer. However, there is little evidence to support the claim that simple caloric information will affect eating behavior. We present a study comparing the effects of calorie information and “asymmetrically paternalistic” encouragement of low calorie foods (manipulating the convenience of healthy options) on consumers’ food choices. People entering a Subway restaurant were offered a free meal of their choosing in exchange for completing a short survey. Presentation of meal options varied on three dimensions, testing the effects of providing calorie information, providing a recommendation of how many calories should be eaten daily, and manipulating the convenience of healthy versus unhealthy options. Overall, neither calorie information (p=.36) nor daily calorie recommendation (p=.93) affected food purchases. However, healthier options were significantly more likely to be chosen when they were made more convenient than other options (OR=2.68, p=.001). These results suggest that merely providing simple information about calories may be less effective than subtle guidance in enticing fast-food customers towards less caloric meals. The convenience manipulation provides a conceptual look at how such guidance may be used to change behavior. More research will be needed to determine how to apply such manipulations in real world settings and whether or not there are compensatory effects on other food choices. Although the motivation to provide calorie information is well intentioned, our results suggest that this information alone may not lead to healthier behavior, at least not in the absence of other educational programs to help people use this information. In contrast, an approach aimed at making it easier for people to choose healthier options may be implementable without intensive retraining or instruction.