Role of Learning Food Preferences

• Family and same sex/age peers are powerful influences on food preferences. Children observe and imitate eating behaviour and food preferences of family and other children who are seen as role models.
• SLT - Imitation is especially likely if

  Imitation is especially likely if they identify with the role model due to shared characteristics or want to be like them. Children see friends/family be rewarded for eating behaviour (e.g. receiving praise), known as vicarious reinforcement
• Preferences are also affected by conditioning as they're shaped by consequences of eating behaviour
• How is a child's eating behaviour affected by operant conditioning

  Through operant conditioning, children are more likely to prefer to repeatedly eat foods if they're directly rewarded for eating them e.g. being praised by a parent for eating vegetables. Similarly, if a child is punished for eating certain foods, they're less likely to eat them again in the future
• What shapes what and how you eat

  Vabo and Hansen found that what and how much you eat is shaped by learning around the family table and culture. These can be powerful enough to overcome innate aversions. This affects meat eating e.g. Chinese people eat all parts including liver, kidney etc (offal) vs USA eat certain parts (e.g. leg meat).
• What do cultural norms define

  They learnt that cultural norms also define what is a "proper meal". For example, older generations eat meat and two vegetables instead of junk food.
• EVAL points for roll of learning in food preferences

  • S - support for role of parent influences. (Olivera et al)
  • S - support for role of peer influences. (Birch)
  • W - deterministic
  • W - alternative exp for food preferences - eating habits are a product of evolution
• S - support for the role of parent influences. Olivera et al found a positive correlation between a mothers' food intake for most nutrients and her preschool children's food intake for most nutrients. Shows mothers have a significant influence on eating beh of children as children tended to imitate their eating preferences. Also there are practical applications to parental attitudes and eating beh should be targeted to improve children's diets. Validates the role of learning from parents in food preferences and applied to improve diets.
• S - support for the role of peer influences. Birch - for 4 consecutive lunchtimes, children were seated next to other children who preferred a diff vegetable to the one they preferred. At the end of the 4 days, these children shows a change in their vegetable preference and this was still evident at a follow up several weeks later. S bc it shows the impact of peers on eating beh of children as children learn eating preferences through observation and imitation of peers they identify with. Increase V
• W - learning exp - deterministic. Deterministic bc it proposes that eating beh is controlled by the environment + the foods that ppl around us eat. Ignores the notion of free will + fact that our eating beh is affected by our own thoughts + beliefs rather than being completely reliant upon external influences. For example ...
• (w - role of learning - determinstic)... E.g despite meat being common + accepted in cultures + often sig in parts of cultural practices, veganism + vegetarianism gained popularity bc of moral objections to eating meat + concerns over the environmental impact. + those will health concerns may avoid foods those around them eat. Shows that FW can override the influence of culture. This gives a negative outlook on eating beh
• W - role of learning - alternative exp for food preferences - product of evolution. Ppl may prefer eating meat/sweet food not due to conforming to cultural norms or imitating RMs but due to being genetically bred to prefer them. Steiner found that new-born babies who had no prior learning with food had a preference for sweet foods. Shows that food preferences is not learnt but must be innate which contradicts learning theory. Therefore learning exp is incomplete and decreases V