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Special Issue "The 2nd Edition of Motivations Associated with Food Choices and Eating Practices"

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A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Sensory and Consumer Sciences".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (19 May 2023) | Viewed by 9198

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Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Raquel P. F. Guiné

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Guest Editor

CERNAS Research Centre and Department of Food Industry, Polytechnic Institute of Viseu, 3504-510 Viseu, Portugal
Interests: food chemistry; food engineering; nutrition; sustainable agriculture; food science
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The main factors that lead people to eat are basic needs such as hunger and satiety. However, what people choose to eat is not determined exclusively by physiological or nutritional needs. In fact, in addition to the main factors that prompt eating, one can find a wide variety of other factors affecting food choices.

The human behaviors regarding foods are linked to a number of factors either of a sociological or psychological nature. Hence, the aim of this Special Issue is to gather studies and research works about the possible different types of motivations that determine people’s eating patterns, either in relation to their food choices or eating habits. This Special Issue is a second edition of the previous Special Issue on the same topic and focuses on topics including, but not limited to, health motivations, economic factors, emotional aspects, cultural influences, marketing and commercials, and environmental concerns.

Prof. Dr. Raquel P. F. Guiné
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

eating behavior
food choice
eating habits
healthy eating
emotional eating
sustainable food
marketing
nutrition

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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Open AccessArticle

Emotions and Food Consumption: Emotional Eating Behavior in a European Population

Foods 2023, 12(4), 872; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12040872 - 17 Feb 2023

Viewed by 2187

Abstract

Emotion can reflect in the perception of food consumption. An increase in food intake during emotional and psychological conditions may have a negative impact on human health. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to determine the associations between food consumption, emotional eating behavior, and emotional conditions such as stress, depression, loneliness, boredom eating, maintaining vigilance and alertness, and emotional food consolation. We used a Motivations for Food Choices Questionnaire (Eating Motivations, EATMOT) to determine the emotional aspects of food consumption in 9052 respondents living in 12 European countries between October 2017 and March 2018. Ordinal linear regression was used to identify the associations between the emotional eating behavior and emotional conditions such as stress, depression, loneliness, emotional consolation, and reasons to improve physical and psychological conditions. The regression models confirmed the associations between food consumption, emotional conditions, and emotional eating behavior. Associations were found between the emotional eating behavior and stress (odds ratio (OR) = 1.30, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.07–1.60, p = 0.010), depressive mood (OR = 1.41, 95% CI = 1.40–1.43, p < 0.001), loneliness (OR = 1.60, 95% CI = 1.58–1.62, p < 0.001), boredom (OR = 1.37, 95% CI = 1.36–1.39, p < 0.001), and emotional consolation (OR = 1.55, 95% CI = 1.54–1.57, p < 0.001). Emotional eating was associated with an effort to improve physical and psychological conditions, such as controlling body weight (OR = 1.11, 95% CI = 1.10–1.12, p < 0.001), keeping awake and alert (OR = 1.19, 95% CI = 1.19–1.20, p < 0.001) and consumption to feel good (OR = 1.22, 95% CI = 1.21–1.22, p < 0.001). In conclusion, emotions might provoke emotional eating behavior. The appropriate way to handle stress, depression, or other emotional states is important in conditions of being emotionally overwhelmed. The public should be educated on how to handle different emotional states. The focus should be moved somehow from emotional eating and the consumption of unhealthy food to healthy lifestyle practices, including regular exercise and healthy eating habits. Thus, it is necessary to halt these negative health effects on human health through public health programs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The 2nd Edition of Motivations Associated with Food Choices and Eating Practices)

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Open AccessArticle

Consumer Behaviour and Attitude towards the Purchase of Organic Products in Riobamba, Ecuador

Víctor Dante Ayaviri-Nina

Nataly Sthefania Jaramillo-Quinzo

Gabith Miriam Quispe-Fernández

and

Foods 2022, 11(18), 2849; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods11182849 - 14 Sep 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2490

Abstract

The development of organic agriculture has been promoted worldwide to improve the nutritional health of families, and Ecuador is no exception. The aim of this research was to identify the behaviour and attitudes of consumers toward the commercialization of organic products in the city of Riobamba. This will help us to understand in what situations the consumers access these foods, the producer position in relation to the market, and to know their attitude towards these products. The study used a quantitative approach, and is descriptive, incorporating the deductive method and a non-experimental design. The techniques used were a survey as a source of data collection, with a sample including 195 consumers. Linear regression was applied to test the hypotheses; this made it possible to identify those demographic and cultural factors that determine, to a lesser extent, consumer purchase behaviour in regard to organic products. The study determined that motivation, emotions, and feelings are significantly related to the consumer’s attitude and purchase of organic products. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The 2nd Edition of Motivations Associated with Food Choices and Eating Practices)

Open AccessArticle

The Effect of Novel and Environmentally Friendly Foods on Consumer Attitude and Behavior: A Value-Attitude-Behavioral Model

Chun-Chieh Ma

and

Hsiao-Ping Chang

Foods 2022, 11(16), 2423; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods11162423 - 12 Aug 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1624

Abstract

Extreme weather conditions have intensified due to manufactured environmental damage in recent years. To reduce the environmental impact on the Earth, many consumers seek to change their dietary patterns to protect the environment and voluntarily switch to a vegetarian diet. Past studies have found that the transition from nonvegetarian to vegetarian is not easy, but promoting the consumption of alternative foods such as plant-based meat alternatives should help consumers gradually reduce their dependence on meat during the transition period of changing their eating habits. This study was designed to apply the value-attitude-behavior model (VAB) to study the consumption attitude and behavior of novel and environmentally friendly foods such as plant-based meat alternatives, and the novelty of plant-based meat alternatives was included as an intervening variable for discussion. In this study, 376 valid questionnaires were collected from college students in Taiwan, and the recovery rate of valid questionnaires was 94%. It was found from the analysis of results that perceptions of green value and animal welfare value had a significantly positive effect on attitude, while attitude and product knowledge also had a significant positive effect on behavior; however, the novelty of plant-based meat alternatives products did not have an interference effect on the relationship between product knowledge and behavior. Based on the research findings of this study, it is suggested that when introducing plant-based meat alternatives products, food companies should not only let consumers understand that they are based on environmental friendliness and animal welfare values but also enhance the marketing and promotion of product knowledge to increase consumers’ confidence in purchasing plant-based meat alternatives and reduce their consumption concerns. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The 2nd Edition of Motivations Associated with Food Choices and Eating Practices)

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Review

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Open AccessReview

The Motivations for Consumption of Edible Insects: A Systematic Review

Sofia G. Florença

Raquel P. F. Guiné

Fernando J. A. Gonçalves

and

Foods 2022, 11(22), 3643; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods11223643 - 15 Nov 2022

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1928

Abstract

The consumption of edible insects (EI) is traditional in many parts of the world, but not in others. In fact, despite globalization and the multiple advantages pointed out about the consumption of EI, there are still many countries where entomophagy is seen with disgust and aversion. This systematic review aimed to examine the motivations that influence the consumption of EI in diverse cultures and understand if there are differences between Western countries (WC) and insect-eating countries (IEC). It further evaluated whether the degree of acceptability was influenced by the form of consumption of the insects (eating whole insects or foods containing insects). This literature review was conducted in November 2021 within three databases, Web of Science, PubMed and Scopus, according to the Preferred Reporting of Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis and using PRISMA directives. From a total of 245 studies, 31 were selected to be included in this review, based on the inclusion criteria defined: only original research articles, from 2010 or beyond, and written in English. The results indicated that the main motivations that determine the consumption of EI are related to gender, age, sustainability, nutritional value, sensory attributes, tradition/culture, food neophobia, disgust and familiarity/past experiences. Moreover, whereas in IEC, there is a greater focus on factors related to sensory attributes, availability, affordability and preferences, in WC, there is a bigger emphasis on determinants such as nutritional value, sustainability, benefits, familiarity/past experience, tradition/culture, food neophobia and disgust. Finally, it was observed that people in WC are more willing to accept food products containing insects rather than the whole insect, which is one of the most promising points to be addressed in the future. Overall, this review highlights that there are numerous factors influencing the consumption of edible insects, and differences between WC and IEC are clear in what concerns the motivations of consumers. Hence, targeting market segments and consumers’ characteristics has to be present when designing strategies to incentivize the consumption of EI in WC as a part of a global strategy for sustainability of food systems. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The 2nd Edition of Motivations Associated with Food Choices and Eating Practices)

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