When variety is not the spice of life: The influence of perceived relational self-threat on variety seeking in snack choices.

People often seek variety in food choices because they believe variety offers them many benefits such as giving them a chance to explore new foods while decreasing the likelihood of boredom from eating the same food repeatedly. While much research has explored situational factors that increase variety seeking behavior, we explore a situational factor that decreases variety seeking. Specifically, this research investigates how perceived relational threat affects variety seeking in snack choices. Across three studies, we experimentally manipulate relational self-threat and find that those who experience high (vs. low) threat seek less variety (Study 1), even when the same choice set is construed as having more (vs. less) variety (Study 2). This effect is attenuated when people have the chance to engage in self-affirmation (Study 3).

Negative associations of frozen compared with fresh vegetables.

Despite convenience and nutrition advantages of frozen vegetables, consumption of them is low compared with fresh vegetables and continues to decrease. In two studies, we observe a negative bias for frozen vegetables compared with fresh vegetables. In study 1, we used an Implicit Association Test (IAT) to demonstrate that generalized negative associations with frozen vegetables are automatic, robust, and ingrained in long-term memory. In study 2, we conceptually replicate this finding with an explicit measure and extend it by examining the role of transforming the food product in formation of the observed negative bias. We find no improvement in evaluation for frozen spinach when participants contemplate the final cooked product. Instead, we see less favorable evaluations of fresh spinach when participants contemplate the final cooked product. These findings are consistent with previous research that demonstrates that transformation of a food from its "natural" state leads to less favorable evaluations of it.

Dissociation from beloved unhealthy brands decreases preference for and consumption of vegetables.

Many people form strong bonds with brands, including those for unhealthy foods. Thus, prompting people to dissociate from beloved but unhealthy food brands is an intuitively appealing means to shift consumption away from unhealthy options and toward healthy options. Contrary to this position, we demonstrate that dissociating from unhealthy but beloved brands diminishes people's interest in consuming vegetables because the dissociation depletes self-regulatory resources. Across three experimental studies, we manipulate dissociation from two beloved brands both implicitly (studies 1-2) and explicitly (study 3) and observe effects on both preference for vegetables (studies 2-3) and actual vegetable consumption (study 1). In study 1, participants consumed fewer vegetables following dissociation from (vs. association with) a beloved candy brand. Study 2 demonstrates that the effect of depletion on preference for vegetables is more pronounced for those who strongly identify with the brand, as these individuals are most depleted by the dissociation attempt. Finally, study 3 illustrates that the difficulty experienced when trying to dissociate from beloved brands drives the observed effects on vegetable preference and consumption for those who strongly (vs. weakly) identify with the brand.

Activating health goals reduces (increases) hedonic evaluation of food brands for people who harbor highly positive (negative) affect toward them.

Associations of pleasure and fun with junk foods have the potential to create considerable challenges for efforts to improve diets. The aim of this research was to determine whether activating health goals had the potential to exploit mixed motivations (i.e., health and pleasure) that people have related to food, and subsequently strip junk foods of the expected pleasure derived from them. In study 1, 98 participants evaluated a soft drink brand after being primed (not primed) for health. In study 2, 93 participants evaluated a presweetened breakfast cereal brand after being primed (not primed) for health. In both studies, participants who harbored highly positive feelings for the food brands devalued their hedonic judgments of them when they were primed for health. However, in an unexpected result, participants in both studies who harbored highly negative feelings for the food brands revalued their hedonic judgments of them (i.e., increased the favorability) when they were primed for health. Thus, increasing health salience is only effective in decreasing expected pleasure derived from junk foods for people who harbor positive affect toward junk food brands, and is likely counterproductive for people who harbor negative affect toward junk food brands.

Time of day effects on the regulation of food consumption after activation of health goals.

Previous research has found that while self-regulation is a resource that can be depleted, enhanced motivation to do so can help people successfully self-regulate. The aim of this research was to determine whether activating health goals-either via laboratory priming techniques or via advertisements-can help people regulate food intake later in the day, when self-regulation resources are typically depleted. In two experimental studies, participants completed goal activation tasks in the morning or in the afternoon while they had a snack food (M&M's candies) available for consumption. In study 1, 121 participants viewed television shows with either healthy food ads, indulgent food ads, or non-food ads embedded within the program. In study 2, 149 participants completed a supraliminal but nonconscious goal priming exercise, in which they searched for health, indulgence, or control words in a puzzle. In both studies, activation of health goals led to decreased consumption of the snack food in the afternoon. In contrast, activation of health goals did not change consumption in the morning, when self-regulatory resources are typically high, due to replenishment after rest. These results suggest that activating health goals-either via classic laboratory goal-priming paradigms or via "real world primes," such as ads for healthy foods-helps people to overcome failures in curbing food consumption due to depleted self-regulatory resources later in the day.

Psychological reactance impacts ratings of pediatrician vaccine-related communication quality, perceived vaccine safety, and vaccination priority among U.S. parents.

Physician communication surrounding vaccination is important in driving patient compliance with schedules and recommendations, but patient psychological factors suggest that communication strategies may have differential effects on patients. This paper investigates how psychological reactance, defined as an individuals' propensity to restore their autonomy when they perceive that others are trying to impose their will on them, impacts perceptions about physician communication and perceptions and prioritizations of vaccination. We propose and describe the results of a study that was conducted to assess the relationship between individual differences in reactance, perceived quality of pediatrician communication, perceptions of vaccination safety, and vaccination prioritization using a sample of parents. We recruited 300 parent participants via the online platform Prolific Academic in which they completed a computer-mediated survey. Results show that compared to those who are low in psychological reactance, those high in psychological reactance place less of a priority on vaccination, and that this relationship is driven by evaluations of physician communication quality and perceived vaccine safety. Our findings suggest that physicians should not adopt a one-size-fits-all approach when interacting with patients and should tailor messaging to patients based on psychological factors including reactance.

Helping lower income parents reduce the risk of food waste resulting from children's aversion to healthier food options: Comment on Daniel (2016).

We reflect on Daniel's (2016) finding that a challenge to improving the diets of lower income children is parental worry over food waste that results from children's rejection of healthier food options such as vegetables. This finding has important implications because previous research has indicated novel foods that have a bitter or sour flavor profile (as is the case with many vegetables) must be introduced to children several times before these foods are accepted. We suggest research-based techniques that parents could utilize to reduce the risk of costly food waste, and discuss obstacles that could impede well-intended parents from reaching their goals of improving their children's diets.