Role of learning in food preferences development (nurture)

• Our main influences for food preference: parents, friends (social) & media (cultural).
• Parental Influences:

  1. Observation- Brown & Ogden found consistent correlations between parents and children in terms of snacking, eating motivations & body dissatisfaction. Children imitate parents= vicarious learning (reinforcement). Parents= role models, children= learners- they observe then imitate parents.
• Parental Influences:

  2. Manipulation- Operant conditioning (rewards & punishment). The use of one food to encourage the consumption of another, eg if eat veg, can have something unhealthy after like ice-cream, or using punishments, eg finish veg or no tv.
• Evaluation of parental influences- :/:

  • Russell et al interviewed parents of 2-5 year olds about how they influenced childrens' food preferences, and found modelling and exposure to be more effective than forcing/ restricting.
• Evaluation of parental influences- :/:

  • Wardle et al found that parental fruit & veg consumption was a strong predictor of childrens' fruit & veg consumption, supporting the theory that parents have a strong influence on the development of food preferences.
• Evaluation of parental influences- :/:

  • Birch et al found that manipulation wasn't a successful strategy and that actually it results in an increase in preference for the reward food (eg ice-cream), and a decrease in preference for the healthy food (eg broccoli).
• Peer Influences:

  • Social learning theory- same age is a powerful influence, particularly for children & young people; peers could have both positive & negative influences on one another, eg if you see a peer trying new foods, then you are more likely to try it as well.
  • This is because of factors like identification & vicarious reinforcement.
• Evaluation of peer influences- strength:

  • Birch observed that by sitting one child with another who has a different vegetable preference (eg carrots & peas), the children demonstrated a change in their preferences and that this was still present when followed up several weeks later.
• Evaluation of peer influences- weakness:

  • In contradiction to the theory, Shroff et al 2006 found no correlation between friends when it came to eating patterns.
  • This shows that the theory is unreliable as there is conflicting evidence.
• Media Influences:

  • Media influences include: adverts, celebrities & influences on social media.
  • Celebrities/ influencers act as role models, who individuals may identify with and want to be like so they imitate their behaviour. For example, an influencer sharing 'what I eat in a day' and getting lots of 'likes' & compliments on looks or meal taste- acting as vicarious reinforcement, making viewers more likely to imitate.
• Evaluation of media influences- strength:

  • There's support- Boyland & Halford found that tv adverts do directly influence food choices & intake in kids. It was found that the child's weight was also important with overweight kids being more influenced than others when it came to adverts in foods high in sugar & fat. It was also found that the kids who had the highest preferences for carbs & fats were the kids who watched the most tv.
• Evaluation of media influence- :/:

  • Context & culture is important; other factors like age, income, family situations etc are also important.
  • The UK & US love a takeaway; it is quicker to prepare/ get as work can sometimes be too time-consuming.
  • Gillman et al commented on the decline of the 'family meal' with families now commonly eating separately and in front of the tv. Eating in front of the tv is linked to greater consumption of fast foods & less consumption of healthy foods such as fruit & veg.
• Evaluation for media influence- strength:

  • There's support- Chen & Yang analysed tweets made by residents of Columbus, Ohio over the course of 5 weekdays for food related items such as where they shopped & ate out.
  • They found there was a relationship between the number of nearby grocery stores and making healthy food choices, but no relationship between the number of nearby fast-food outlets and unhealthy food choices, showing that culture & environment (context) can influence food choices, but that people can resist unhealthy habits if alternatives are available.