Bring it on! Package shape signaling dominant male body promotes healthy food consumption for male consumers

Abstract

Although the effects of product packaging on food healthiness and product/brand anthropomorphism on consumer response have been extensively studied, there has been little attention paid to how anthropomorphizing the package could potentially bias consumers' perception of food healthiness and subsequent consumption. Drawing on theory from evolutionary psychology, the current paper proposes that package signaling a dominant male body (vs. nondominant package) promoted healthy food consumption among males rather than female consumers. In a field study (Study 1), preliminary real‐world evidence was collected that showed that both genders perceived food as healthier when it was packaged in a dominant (vs. nondominant) package. However, in terms of food content satisfaction, only males reported more satisfaction when exposed to the dominant (vs. nondominant) package, and this effect was not observed for unhealthy food. Next, two lab experiments directly assessed the impact of package dominance on male consumers' purchase intention of healthy food products and found that intrasexual competition underlies such effect (Studies 2 and 3). These findings were contingent on individual differences in competitive mindset (Study 4); competitive (vs. cooperative) consumers were more inclined to pay a premium for healthy food within dominant package. Our work adds to the growing body of literature on anthropomorphic package by highlighting the influential role of package dominance on healthy food consumption. Marketers selling healthy food may adopt a dominant (i.e., V‐shaped package) to communicate the product's healthiness and promote consumption for male consumers.

Guest editorial: Favoring fieldwork makes marketing more meaningful

“…In fact, self-report measures frequently produce findings that are in direct contrast to customers’ actual shopping responses (Otterbring, 2020; Sciandra et al , 2019) and sometimes even change customers’ subsequent behavior in case self-report data are collected prior to the behavioral outcome (Morwitz and Fitzsimons, 2004). Accordingly, the common focus areas of rigor and control, frequently treated as top priorities in lab-based studies, can lead to results that are irrelevant to managerially important problems taking place in the real world in case most published findings are purely based on self-report, eventually hurting marketing science as a discipline (Lehmann et al , 2011; Qian et al , 2023).…”

The Effect of Vice–Virtue Bundles on Consumers’ Purchase Intentions for Vice Packaged Foods: Evidence from Randomized Experiments

“…Second, our work contributes to the literature on packaged food consumption. Previous literature has investigated the factors influencing purchase intentions for packaged food from various angles, including package appearances such as color [53], shape [26], and pattern complexity [11], as well as package material features like plastic content [54] and smart degree [55]. Additionally, the claims of included ingredients on the packaging, such as botanical ingredients [30] and flavor-giving components [56], have been explored.…”

The length of brand names influences the expectation of healthiness in foods and preference for healthy foods

“…brand names, brand logos, brand personality) provide a rich source of information, and expectations and help consumers reduce the risks associated with food choices (e.g., Keller, 2003;Qian et al, 2023;Shimp & DeLozier, 1986;Wu et al, 2022). Research suggests that specific brand elements can influence consumers' perceptions and preferences for the brand/product (e.g., Ilicic & Brennan, 2023;Techawachirakul et al, 2022Techawachirakul et al, , 2023Zou et al, 2023).…”