Effect of co-eating on unfamiliar food intake among Japanese young adults

• Published in: Food quality and preference Vol. 89; p. 104135
• Main Authors: Kimura, Atsushi, Tokunaga, Hiroko, Sasaki, Hiroki, Shuzo, Masaki, Mukawa, Naoki, Wada, Yuji
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01.04.2021
• Subjects: Co-eating; Food acceptance; Modeling; Novel food; Social factor; Social factor; Co-eating; Novel food; Modeling; Food acceptance
• ISSN: 0950-3293; 1873-6343
• DOI: 10.1016/j.foodqual.2020.104135

•Partner presence on unfamiliar food intake was observed.•Ratio of all kinds of unfamiliar food intake was higher in the pair condition.•Subjective evaluations of unfamiliar food did not differ between condition.•Social factors may influence unfamiliar food intake in the pair condition. The present study explored whether partner presence (pair vs. individual) affects unfamiliar food intake. In the experiment, participants were asked to taste pieces of 13 kinds of snacks, including three unfamiliar and ten neutral snacks, and were informed that they did not have to eat a snack if they did not want to. The total amounts and ratios of all kinds of snacks consumed for unfamiliar and neutral snacks were compared between participants in the pair condition and those in the individual condition. Results demonstrated that the ratio of participants who consumed all three kinds of unfamiliar snacks was higher in the pair condition than in the individual condition. Furthermore, the results of communication analyses showed that participants in the pair condition tried unfamiliar snacks even after the peer expressed a negative evaluation of a snack. These results suggest that social motivation such as risk-taking and conformity affect unfamiliar food intake in co-eating situations.