Food Consumption
Conditions
Brief summary
This study is a test of possible mechanisms by which calorie labels might lead people to increase calorie intake. The investigators hypothesize that calorie labels might increase calorie intake because 1) people infer that higher calorie foods are tastier, 2) calorie labels invoke thoughts of dieting, leading people to overconsume as a reaction, 3) people try to maximize calories consumed per dollar spent, and 4) calorie labels change one's goal motivation toward food, causing people to eat more.
Interventions
OTHERCalorie information
Nutrition label featuring calorie information will be provided.
OTHERNo calorie information
No nutrition label will be provided in this condition.
Sponsors
Carnegie Mellon University
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
BASIC_SCIENCE
Masking
SINGLE (Subject)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* Must be able to taste items used in study
Exclusion criteria
* Food allergies to items used in study
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Calories consumed | At time of intervention (30 minutes) | The investigators will assess how many calories are consumed by participants by weighing the cereal provided before and after participants complete the taste test portion of the study. This will happen within 30 minutes of the intervention, which is an experimental manipulation of whether or not calorie labels are present. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Attitudes toward food | At time of intervention (30 minutes) | Using survey measures, the investigators will assess how people feel toward the food item they just tasted, rating it in terms of perceived tastiness, healthiness, overall quality, and value. These ratings will be on a Likert scale from 1-5. |
Countries
United States
Outcome results
None listed