Psychology

Event Title

Can Snack Choice be Influenced by Non-Conscious Priming?

Document Type

Oral Presentation

Location

Indianapolis, IN

Subject Area

Psychology

Start Date

11-4-2014 8:30 AM

End Date

11-4-2014 10:00 AM

Description

Unhealthy food choices contribute to poor health in the U.S. and other countries and better understanding into the processes that allow individuals to achieve healthier diets is needed. In this study, we are attempting to replicate the findings of two prior studies in which non-consciously priming different aspects of individuals' health-related goals affected their food choice. In the current study, participants are being randomly assigned to complete one of three types of word search puzzles, a manipulation commonly used in priming research. The puzzles contain either healthy words (e.g. healthy, fit), unhealthy words (e.g., flabby, overweight) or control words (e.g., desk, window). After completing the puzzle, participants are invited to select a snack from a box containing a mixture of relatively healthy (e.g., 100 calorie snack packs) and unhealthy (e.g., Dingdongs) snacks. Afterwards, participants complete some additional measures, including questions about goal commitment, and undergo a funneled debriefing. We expect puzzle type to interact with level of commitment to the goal of eating healthy to predict snack choice, which would replicate and support our prior work, suggesting that non-conscious priming manipulations could help individuals achieve their diet goals.

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Apr 11th, 8:30 AM Apr 11th, 10:00 AM

Can Snack Choice be Influenced by Non-Conscious Priming?

Indianapolis, IN

Unhealthy food choices contribute to poor health in the U.S. and other countries and better understanding into the processes that allow individuals to achieve healthier diets is needed. In this study, we are attempting to replicate the findings of two prior studies in which non-consciously priming different aspects of individuals' health-related goals affected their food choice. In the current study, participants are being randomly assigned to complete one of three types of word search puzzles, a manipulation commonly used in priming research. The puzzles contain either healthy words (e.g. healthy, fit), unhealthy words (e.g., flabby, overweight) or control words (e.g., desk, window). After completing the puzzle, participants are invited to select a snack from a box containing a mixture of relatively healthy (e.g., 100 calorie snack packs) and unhealthy (e.g., Dingdongs) snacks. Afterwards, participants complete some additional measures, including questions about goal commitment, and undergo a funneled debriefing. We expect puzzle type to interact with level of commitment to the goal of eating healthy to predict snack choice, which would replicate and support our prior work, suggesting that non-conscious priming manipulations could help individuals achieve their diet goals.