Wansink, Brian and SeaBum Park (2001), “At the Movies: How External Cues and Perceived Taste Impact Consumption Volume,” Food Quality and Preference, 12:1 (January), 69-74.

The amount that you eat can be impacted by more than just taste. Eating out of a large container can increase your consumption as much at 61%. Watch out! Who you go with, how much you pay attention, and your gender also have an effect on consumption. Learn how to control

your external cues that affect your consumption!

At the Movies: How External Cues and Perceived Taste Impact Consumption

Volume

© Food & Brand Lab 2015

What Influences How Much You Eat?

Wansink, Brian and SeaBum Park (2001), “At the Movies: How External Cues and Perceived Taste Impact Consumption Volume,” Food Quality and Preference, 12:1 (January), 69-74.

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Line 1

Taste How

Muc

h E

aten

Why We Think We Eat

0102030405060708090

Line 1Line 2

Why We Actually Eat

Taste

How

Muc

h E

aten

Could be caused by varying the container size!

Mood?

Presence of Others?

Container Size?

Taste?

© Food & Brand Lab 2015

Wansink, Brian and SeaBum Park (2001), “At the Movies: How External Cues and Perceived Taste Impact Consumption Volume,” Food Quality and Preference, 12:1 (January), 69-74.

49%↑ 61%↑

0102030405060708090

100

Good TastingPopcorn

Bad TastingPopcorn

LargeContainerSmallContainer

Pop

corn

Con

sum

ptio

n

Movie goers who rated their popcorn as

favorable at 49% more when given a large

container.

Movie goers who rated their popcorn as

unfavorable at 61% more when given a large

container.

151 moviegoers were given free popcorn at a movie and given a questionnaire to determine their preference of good tasting or bad tasting popcorn based on the size of popcorn (L or S) that they were given.

‘Pop’ goes the results

© Food & Brand Lab 2015

Wansink, Brian and SeaBum Park (2001), “At the Movies: How External Cues and Perceived Taste Impact Consumption Volume,” Food Quality and Preference, 12:1 (January), 69-74.

Don’t Be Fooled! The study found that the following can influence consumption: •  Container size

•  Large containers increase consumption •  Gender

•  Men eat more than women •  Attention level

•  People who pay little attention to how much they eat consume more •  Presence of others

•  Those with others eat more than those alone

Large Container

Consume more even if it does not taste good

Easier to lose track of how

much you have eaten

© Food & Brand Lab 2015

Wansink, Brian and SeaBum Park (2001), “At the Movies: How External Cues and Perceived Taste Impact Consumption Volume,” Food Quality and Preference, 12:1 (January), 69-74.

***This can be especially important for children and the elderly who need the nutrients for continued growth***

TIP: repackage unhealthy snacks into individual sized bags to prevent over consumption!

Someone who does not monitor their consumption is more susceptible to container sizes than someone who closely monitors their consumption

TIP: monitor the amount that you eat so that you do not fall prey to the large containers!

Buy in Family Size

Buy in Individual

Size

Decrease consumption by decreasing packaging sizes of unhealthy foods Increase consumption by increasing packaging sizes of healthy foods

What does it all mean?

© Food & Brand Lab 2015

Wansink, Brian and SeaBum Park (2001), “At the Movies: How External Cues and Perceived Taste Impact Consumption Volume,” Food Quality and Preference, 12:1 (January), 69-74.

Mind Over Matter: Learning More About Portion Control

To learn more about these tips and others that can help you live a healthy life visit:

www.mindlesseating.com http://foodpsychology.cornell.edu/

“If you see it, you'll eat it, expert says” http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/diet.fitness/09/21/kd.mindless.eating/index.html

You Tube: Dr. Wansink discusses the dangers of the buying in bulk (click picture)

WATCH OUT: Don’t

unconsciously overeat!

Created By: Lauren Faldet © Food & Brand Lab 2015