Using Virtual Reality to Stimulate Healthy and Environmentally Friendly Food Consumption among Children: An Interview Study
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Design and Participants
2.2. Procedure
2.3. Apparatus
2.4. The Interview Guide
2.5. Data Analysis
3. Results
3.1. Pop-Up Message Content Was Well Recalled, but Understood Only from a Certain Age Onwards
“Well, the girl had black hair with a purple tail, and I don’t remember what her shoes looked like, or that she wasn’t wearing shoes. I don’t remember that”(Dutch girl, 8 years old).
“I’ve seen a lot of monkeys. Orangutans. Or at least, brown monkeys. And then it said: ‘this product is good or bad for the rainforest’”(Dutch girl, 10 years old).
3.2. With Understanding Came Rational and Especially Negative Emotional Responses
“Well, I thought, yes these are healthy, and these are not”(Dutch boy, 11 years old).
“With one I thought this is bad and with the other I thought this is good. [Interviewer: And why did you think that?] Because if the jungle breaks down, I will no longer have any jungle”(Dutch boy, 12 years old).
“I thought they [i.e., the dolls] were cute”(Dutch girl, 8 years old).
“Well, that I wouldn’t buy that product because I feel sorry for the monkeys. They live there too. And then <laughs> you actually demolish their house, and I don’t think you can do that”(Dutch girl, 13 years old).
3.3. Mixed Expectations about Encountering Pop-Ups in Real Life, but the Expected Behavioural Impact Is Positive
“Yes good. [Interviewer: And why?] Well, because then you know that this [product] can make you very fat and that [product] not”(Dutch boy, 11 years old).
“Good. [Interviewer: Good?] I do think that far fewer people then just buy [products]. [Interviewer: And why do you think that?] Well, because people end up like: ‘Yes, what I’m buying now is just bad’. And if it is not sold then it is no longer made”(Dutch girl, 11 years old).
“Cute too. Because monkeys are cute”(Dutch girl, 10 years old).
“Weird. [Interviewer: Why weird?] Ehm, because then suddenly out of nowhere I would encounter a picture with a monkey …”(Dutch girl, 8 years old).
“Yes, I think you better take this one [i.e., the slim doll] now because it is healthier”(Dutch boy, 11 years old).
“Oh yeah. [If I see] the first one, I’ll take it, and when I see the destroyed one [i.e., the destroyed rainforest], I’ll put it back”(Dutch boy, 9 years old).
4. Conclusions and Discussion
4.1. General Discussion
4.2. Limitations
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
Appendix A. Code Book
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- Yes: Participant correctly described the text and/or graphics that was presented on the pop-ups.
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- No: Participant did not (correctly) describe the text and/or graphics that was presented on the pop-ups.
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- Yes: Based on the answer given, it was clear that the participant understood the message the pop-ups aimed to convey, i.e., the impact the consumption of the different food products on their health or the environment.
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- No: Based on the answer given, it was clear that the participant did not understand the message the pop-ups aimed to convey.
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- Nice
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- Guilt
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- Feeling sorry
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- Awareness of behavioural impact
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- Scepticism
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- Wonderment
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- Positive
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- Negative
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- Neutral
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- Pop-up increases awareness
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- Pop-up might have a positive influence
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- Likeability of visual part pop-up
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- Peculiarity of the pop-up in real life
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- Yes: Participant expected future decisions to be influenced by pop-up.
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- No: Participant did not expect future decisions to be influenced by pop-up.
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- Pop-up increases awareness of the environmental/health impact.
- -
- Yes
- -
- No
- -
- Yes
- -
- No
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Smit, E.S.; Meijers, M.H.C.; van der Laan, L.N. Using Virtual Reality to Stimulate Healthy and Environmentally Friendly Food Consumption among Children: An Interview Study. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 1088. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18031088
Smit ES, Meijers MHC, van der Laan LN. Using Virtual Reality to Stimulate Healthy and Environmentally Friendly Food Consumption among Children: An Interview Study. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021; 18(3):1088. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18031088
Chicago/Turabian StyleSmit, Eline Suzanne, Marijn Hendrika Catharina Meijers, and Laura Nynke van der Laan. 2021. "Using Virtual Reality to Stimulate Healthy and Environmentally Friendly Food Consumption among Children: An Interview Study" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18, no. 3: 1088. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18031088