Whether Smaller Plates Reduce Consumption Depends on Who's Serving and Who's Looking: A Meta-Analysis

Abstract

The literature on whether varying plate size has an effect on consumption is mixed and contradictory. This meta-analysis of 56 studies from 20 papers shows that varying the size of the container holding food (e.g., plate or bowl) has a substantial effect on amount self-served and/or consumed (Cohen's d 5 .43). More generally, we found a doubling of plate size increased the amount self-served or amount consumed by 41%. Our analysis resolves the various contradictions of past reviews: we found that the plate-size effect had a substantial effect on amount self-served (d 5 .51) and on amount consumed when the portion was self-served (d 5 .70) or manipulated along with (confounded with) plate size (d 5 48). However, plate size had no effect on amount consumed when the portion size was held constant (d 5 .03). Overall, plate size had a stronger effect when participants were unaware that they were participating in a food study (d 5 .76).

How does plate size affect estimated satiation and intake for individuals in normal-weight and overweight groups?

“…Discrepancy between the previous and present studies may be attributed to differences in the methodologies. Previous studies typically used an ad libitum design in a buffet setting, which gave a more realistic account of the eating situation, but could also introduce bias to the participant's eating behaviours (26,29). Findings from the present study tentatively support the use of VAS on food images for capturing different responses to plate sizes.…”

Behavioural Insights and (Un)healthy Dietary Choices: a Review of Current Evidence

“…While the specific mechanisms differ among the surveyed studiesfrom changing the effort to obtain food, the perception of healthiness and quantity, and the sensation of foods (i.e., flavours or oral processing) before or during a mealmost results suggest that such interventions could effectively alter food choices. Studies reviewing changes in food positioning, dishware, portion size, and food variety find a meaningful influence on food choices (Broers et al 2017;Bucher et al 2016;Holden et al 2016;Hollands et al 2015;Roy et al 2015;Wadhera and Capaldi-Phillips 2014;Zlatevska et al 2014). Still, a relevant number of reviews could not support such an overall conclusion (Libotte et al 2014;Robinson et al 2014b;Skov et al 2013).…”

“…The fact that effectiveness of interventions varies among different study designs is most elaborately shown with regard to the portion-size effect. Results seem to depend on the type of food, the way food is selected, and whether the study design is overt or not (see Holden et al 2016;Lycett et al 2017;Robinson et al 2014b), which makes it difficult to draw general conclusions for policy-makers.…”

“…Some of these reviews focus on specific settings such as schools (Nørnberg et al 2015), universities (Roy et al 2015), and self-service settings (Skov et al 2013); others cover workplace interventions (Allan et al 2017) or children in their home environment (Lycett et al 2017). Other reviews focus on specific ways food is presented, such as type of tableware (e.g., Holden et al 2016), or have not focused on choice but rather included relevant literature while reviewing a wider set of interventions to foster healthier choices (e.g., Hillier-Brown et al 2017;Kahn-Marshall and Gallant 2012).…”

Influence of the color and size of the plate on the subjective ratings of, taste expectations concerning, and willingness‐to‐pay for, Asian noodles

“…In addition to the color of the plates, the size of the plates was also manipulated in order to examine the interaction between these two physical attributes of the crockery. It should be noted that plate size has a substantial effect on the amount of food that is both served and consumed (for a meta‐analysis of 56 studies from 20 articles, see Holden, Zlatevska, & Dubelaar, ).…”