Mere social knowledge impacts children's consumption and categorization of foods

Abstract

How does social information affect the perception of taste early in life? Does mere knowledge of other people's food preferences impact children's own experience when eating? In Experiment 1, 5- and 6-year-old children consumed more of a food described as popular with other children than a food that was described as unpopular with other children, even though the two foods were identical. In Experiment 2, children ate more of a food described as popular with children than a food described as popular with adults. Experiment 3 tested whether different perceptual experiences of otherwise identical foods contributed to the mechanisms underlying children's consumption. After sampling both endpoints of a sweet-to-sour range (applesauce with 0 mL or 5mL of lemon juice added), children were asked to taste and categorize applesauce samples with varying amounts of lemon juice added. When classifying ambiguous samples that were near the midpoint of the range (2 mL and 3 mL), children were more likely to categorize popular foods as sweet as compared to unpopular foods. Together, these findings provide evidence that social information plays a powerful role in guiding children's consumption and perception of foods. Broader links to the sociality of food selection are discussed.

A biopsychosocial approach to processes and pathways in the development of overweight and obesity in childhood: Insights from developmental theory and research

“…For example, whether and how parental beliefs and expectations (such as about the child's weight) could in turn influence the child's internalization of beliefs about their own body weight, with potential negative consequences . Greater attention also could have been given to children's food cognitions, how they develop in childhood, influences on them, and their role in OW/OB …”

“…Future examinations could include the content of child cognitions and interpretations as well as when and how they develop. The child cognitions could be about food categorization and nutrition knowledge, as well as about eating and weight (including their own eating and weight), parent behavior, beliefs, and intentions. There is an extensive body of research on child “theory of mind” in developmental science that could be drawn on in conceptualizing and designing research about the development of child cognitions and interpretations in relation to eating and weight.…”

“…331 Greater attention also could have been given to children's food cognitions, how they develop in childhood, influences on them, and their role in OW/OB. 332,333 In this review, we have not been able to consider measurement, where there are at least three issues that are relevant to research on processes in the development of OW/OB in childhood. The first is about how psychosocial processes, especially parenting styles, and feeding practices are measured.…”

How information about what is “healthy” versus “unhealthy” impacts children’s consumption of otherwise identical foods

“…Neither food contained added sugars or artificial sweeteners. We have used these foods in related studies and found that children's consumption and evaluation of these foods, despite their familiarity, can be influenced by context (DeJesus, Shutts, & Kinzler, 2015;DeJesus, Shutts, & Kinzler, 2018). These fruit sauces are referred to as "food" throughout for brevity, but we return to the issue of generalizability to a broader range of foods in the General Discussion.…”

“…Social messages were selected as the comparison because previous research reveals that children at this age prefer foods that have been endorsed by other children and people who match their social group membership (Birch, 1980;DeJesus et al, 2018;Frazier et al, 2012;Hendy & Raudenbush, 2000;Shutts et al, 2010). Therefore, children may alternatively be inclined to eat a food described as popular among other children, compared to a food described as healthy.…”