Helpt nudgen bij een gezonde en duurzame keuze? Test het in 'real-life'!

Al voor de kerst werden de resultaten van ons nudging onderzoek gepresenteerd. De interessante brochure over de kansen en beperkingen van nudging wil ik graag delen op dit blog.

Overhandiging nudging rapport:
Ika van de Pas (EZ), Hans van Trijp (WUR) en Mariëtte van Amstel (S&P).

Het leuke van dit project was dat we elke nudge op verschillende manieren hebben getoetst. Eerst onder studenten met relatief veel experimentele controle, en daarna in meer realistische omgevingen, zoals het Restaurant van de Toekomst of de kantine van de HAS. 

Je kunt eindeloos debatteren over de voor- en nadelen van nudgen, maar je leert pas veel als je nudges aan een real-life test onderwerpt! The proof of the pudding is in the eating...

Lees hieronder het volledige persbericht:

Klein duwtje richting duurzamer of gezonder

Onderzoek: Subtiele veranderingen in de aankoopomgeving kunnen leiden tot duurzamer of gezonder gedrag

Subtiele veranderingen in de aankoopomgeving kunnen leiden tot duurzamer of gezonder gedrag. Mensen hebben soms een klein duwtje in de rug nodig om duurzame thee, diervriendelijk vlees of een stuk fruit te kopen in plaats van snoep.

Dat blijkt uit de resultaten van het nudging onderzoek, uitgevoerd door een consortium bestaande uit Wageningen Universiteit, Schuttelaar & Partners, HAS KennisTransfer en het Restaurant van de Toekomst. Het doel was bepalen welke nudges - manieren om consumenten een duwtje in de goede richting te geven – effectief en ethisch aanvaardbaar zijn bij het kiezen voor duurzame en gezonde producten.
 
Trein
Treinreizigers bleken iets vaker te kiezen voor een gezonder tussendoortje als ze wisten dat het merendeel van hun medereizigers dit ook deed. In een virtuele kiosk en bij 12 Nederlandse stations is met een schapkaartje en grondsticker informatie gegeven over treinreizigers die kiezen voor fruit. “Dit onderzoek geeft een eerste indicatie dat dit soort interventies voor kleine subtiele veranderingen kunnen zorgen”, aldus Hans van Trijp, Hoogleraar Wageningen University. “We moeten nu verder onderzoeken wat de effecten zijn op grote schaal.”

Naast de studie bij de kiosken is onderzoek gedaan in een laboratorium, een virtuele supermarkt en in verschillende real-life situaties, zoals bedrijfsrestaurants, zorginstellingen en supermarkten. Daarbij komen een aantal andere manieren naar voren om consumenten te verleiden tot duurzamer en gezonder voedsel. Zo blijkt dat consumenten vaak eerder voor thee met een duurzaamheidskeurmerk kiezen wanneer deze in het midden van het theeschap ligt. Een experiment met vlees toont aan dat men vaker kiest voor diervriendelijker vlees wanneer deze in hetzelfde schap ligt als het reguliere en het biologische vlees. Bij cateraars en restaurants kiezen consumenten vaker voor een vegetarisch product wanneer dit onderdeel is van een combinatiemenu. 

Duurzaam en gezond voedsel
Voor het eerst is in Nederland structureel onderzocht in hoeverre nudging relevant is voor duurzamer en gezonder voedsel. “Subtiele veranderingen leiden tot subtiele effecten”, zegt Hans van Trijp. De onderzoekers hebben ook rekening gehouden met de ethische aspecten en komen met een aantal adviezen voor bedrijfsleven en overheid hoe zij nudges op een ethisch verantwoorde manier kunnen toepassen. Zo mag er geen sprake zijn van het inperken van de keuzevrijheid en moet de nudge een maatschappelijk doel dienen.

Onderzoek
Het onderzoek is gefinancieerd door het ministerie van Economische Zaken. Partijen die hun medewerking aan het onderzoek verleenden zijn PLUS Retail BV, NS Stations, het Jeroen Bosch ziekenhuis, Hockeyclub Den Bosch, Stichting Max Havelaar en Stichting Ik Kies Bewust.

Impulsive snacking at the checkout counter: nudging consumers towards healthier 'grab-and-go'-snacks

Candy aisle near checkout 

Tempting snacks placed right near the checkout counter can be hard to resist. Even though you know buying one is not in your best interest, they catch attention. These high-profit 'grap-and-go' snacks are particularly hard to ignore at the end of a shopping trip after making dozens of decisions. Even at my local shoe store, they tried to tempt me in buying candy (see picture).

In our recent paper published in BMC Public Health, we (that is Hans van Trijp, Kai Otten and myself) report two nudging studies on whether assortment structure and accessibility of healthier snacks influences consumer choices. The idea was that providing a larger assortment of healthier snacks and putting them on top of shelves makes these snacks more salient, attractive and convenient, leading hopefully to higher sales.

To test this idea, we first carried out a study among students in which we asked them to make a hypothetical choice from a shelf displayed at their computer screen. The results of this study showed that when the majority of snacks is healthy, students were are more likely to choose such a snack. Although this may seem obvious, they were equally satisfied with their choice and did not feel restricted.

However, lab studies do not always provide reliable predictions about how people behave in real-life. Therefore, we conducted a  field experiment in hospital 'De Gelderse Vallei'. We now put an actual snack shelf near the checkout of the staff canteen. Each week, an alternative snack assortment was on display. The assortment included either 25% or 75% healthy snacks. We also altered their place on the shelf (either on the higher shelves or the lower shelves). On completion of the study, we also conducted a brief survey among employees.

When 75% of the assortment consisted of healthy snacks, sales of healthy snacks were higher. In contrast to our expectations, putting healthy snacks at the most convenient (top) shelf space did not impact consumer choices and sales. It could be that our manipulation was not strong enough (see picture). Interestingly, the majority of surveyed employees did not notice assortment changes. When asked, however, they preferred the shelf displays including the larger variety of healthy snacks.

Overall, these studies show the size of a healthy assortment of snacks matters. A relative large assortment of healthy snacks is able to influence consumer choices. However, we do not know whether this intervention really leads to better snacking habits at the longer term. Moreover, these types of interventions are typically more successful in canteens than those in restaurants and grocery stores, where financial interests are at stake.  


While not all nudges are effective (see for example our nudging study among children), this nudge might be worth to give a try. Without forbidding any foods, a larger assortment of healthy snacks may catch consumer attention and even seduce them to purchase. 


Nudging paper in BMC Public Health: Healthy snacking at the checkout counter: a lab and field study 


van Kleef E, Otten K, & van Trijp HC (2012). Healthy snacks at the checkout counter: A lab and field study on the impact of shelf arrangement and assortment structure on consumer choices. BMC public health, 12 (1) PMID: 23231863

Recommendable book to boost your willpower: The Willpower Instinct of Kelly McGonigal

The best way to make sure you never again give in to temptation (such as eating another chocolate) is to beat yourself up, so that you will never do it again. Quite logical, isn't it? However, it turns out that this is not such a clever way to motivate yourself, because if you feel guilty, this negative feeling is most likely to disappear by eating more. As a result, cheating a little may lead to the infamous 'what the hell effect'.


This is one of the many self-control undermining processes discussed in the book 'The Willpower Instinct' of Kelly McGonigal. Recently, it has been translated into Dutch ('De kracht van wilskracht - Hoe zelfbeheersing werkt en wat je eraan kan doen').

Willpower is one of the hottest topics in research and studied in a diverse range of fields. This book clearly explains the science behind willpower, how it functions and what key problems are. Moreover, informed by numerous studies, the author offers useful strategies to deal with tempation in daily life. After reading this book, it is obvious that willpower is much more than a simple 'just do it' strength that you need to finish your 'to do'-list or drop a few pounds of overweight.

What I particularly like are the chapters about the role of dopamine in anticipation of rewards. When you expect, see or eat food, the brain releases dopamine and gets excited. You can override this automatic system by using your prefrontal cortex in the front of your brain, which is responsibe for more reflective and conscious decisions. Indeed, that is where willpower is located in your head. Unfortunately, this cortex has many things to worry about and gets easily distracted. Small changes or new habits that make you remind your goals and create awarenes such as meditating and exercising will build the foundation for more enduring change. They make your willpower system more efficient and fuelled to do its tasks.

This book is definitely a must-read, also because willpower is not presented as a miracle solution to life's challenges. Yes, you can get more of it, but it has its limits. That reminds me of a sentence I read in a paper of Hofmann, Friese and Wiers (2008): 'Human life would be less pleasurable without our propensity to act impulsively: An over-controlled life can be even psychologically and physically damaging.' So, train your willpower, but give yourself the occasional break.

Can health claims and symbols lead to healthier eating patterns? - CLYMBOL project has started

Last week, we had a kick-off meeting of Clymbol in Brussels. This is an EU-funded project to find out what really happens inside consumer minds regarding health claims and symbols at food packages.

At Wageningen University, we studied this topic before (see earlier posts about nutrition logos and eye tracking research). Now we will particularly focus on the purchase and consumption effects on health and nutrition information at food package.

We keep you updated about new study results!

This is the official press release:

A new EU funded (FP7) project kicks off today aiming to shed light on how consumers interpret health information on food labels, and how this affects their purchasing and consumption behaviour.
CLYMBOL (‘Role of health-related claims and symbols in consumer behaviour’) is a four year research project that will provide insights into consumer understanding and behaviour related to health information. Guidelines will be developed to evaluate the effects of health information on food labels.

The issue
Health claims are messages on food packages that state, suggest or imply a relationship between a certain food product (or one of its constituents) and health. ‘Vitamin A helps the proper functioning of the immune system’, is an example. Health symbols are awarded to food products which meet certain nutrient requirements and constitute the healthiest option within a product category (e.g. Choices logo, Swedish Keyhole).

A snack with visible front of pack logo and calorie info

“Health claims and symbols are aids to help consumers identify foods that are healthier options, but we know little on how they impact consumer behaviour”, says Prof Dr Klaus G. Grunert, partner in, and scientific advisor to, the CLYMBOL project.

The acceptance of food products with health information is influenced by many different factors. Familiarity with the product, health claim or functional ingredient used plus personal relevance appear as the most important determinants. But what is the actual effect of health information on consumer behaviour regarding food choices?

The research
CLYMBOL aims to understand better the effects of health information on purchase and consumption patterns. The CLYMBOL team will create a set of methodologies to measure the role of health claims and symbols in consumer behaviour, drawing on the latest developments in cognitive and behavioural science. The range of studies includes pan-European surveys, experiments in actual supermarkets and analysis of population data. By measuring consumers’ eye movements and reaction times, for example, researchers will be able to observe and analyse subconscious behaviour and link this to actual purchases. CLYMBOL will also develop guidelines directed towards health claims and symbols, taking into account the differences between consumers and EU member states.

The consortium
The CLYMBOL consortium gathers 14 partners from 9 countries who have proven outstanding expertise in various fields: cognitive consumer psychology, economics, marketing, nutrition and public health. A retailer is also part of the group, ensuring that the research can be carried out in real-life settings.

• Aarhus University (Denmark) – Scientific Advisor
• Agrifood Research and Technology Centre of Aragon, CITA (Spain)
• Corvinus University Budapest (Hungary)
• European Food Information Council (Belgium) – Coordinator
• Ghent University (Belgium)
• Globus SB-Warenhaus Holding GmbH &Co. KG (Germany)
• Saarland University (Germany)
• Schuttelaar & Partners NV (Netherlands)
• Swedish National Food Agency (Sweden)
• University of Copenhagen (Denmark)
• University of Oxford (UK)
• University of Surrey (UK)
• University of Ljubljana (Slovenia)
• Wageningen University (The Netherlands)