Adolescents are heavily exposed to marketing for high-calorie, low-nutrient foods. With childhood obesity rates rising, policymakers sometimes consider restrictions on advertising. But how do images of foods influence young people’s behaviour? Dutch researchers explored the neuropsychological processes behind adolescent food choices in response to advertising.
The Role of the ‘Obesogenic Environment’
Children and teenagers are constantly surrounded by cues promoting unhealthy foods—this is often referred to as the ‘obesogenic environment.’ While the influence of marketing on consumer behaviour is well-documented, the underlying psychological mechanisms remain less clear.
The study focused on two main theories:
- Ideomotor Theory: Exposure to an outcome can trigger behaviours that previously led to that outcome. Seeing someone enjoy a chocolate bar may make an adolescent more likely to seek the same experience.
- Pavlovian Responses: Imagery, sounds, or smells associated with rewards can trigger automatic cravings. Recognizing a brand logo may elicit desire, even without consuming the product.
Study Design: The Delicious Snack Game
Researchers developed a computer-based game to test these theories. Adolescents earned points by defeating monsters, which were associated with different food types: chocolate, crisps, cucumber, or tomatoes.
Participants did not know which keys corresponded to which food initially, but learned gradually through trial and feedback. During gameplay, they also reported their hunger levels and desire for each food type.
Key Findings
- Adolescents quickly learned the associations between monster images and corresponding foods.
- Players responded faster and more accurately when the food images represented high-calorie snacks, regardless of their reported hunger or desire.
Conclusions and Implications
This study highlights how neuropsychological mechanisms contribute to adolescents’ responses to food marketing. Results demonstrate that young people can be trained to associate specific images with food rewards, emphasizing the power of advertising.
Pavlovian testing showed that even without explicit food images, cues like cartoon characters can trigger cravings. This indicates that advertising impacts children subtly, making regulation challenging.
On the positive side, similar strategies could promote healthy eating. Early exposure to appealing images of nutritious foods may help adolescents develop preferences for healthier options.