Choice Modeling Framework with Snack Foods Second Poster

This is the second poster about the lab-wide project about snack foods. I presented this poster at Miami University's Undergraduate Research Forum and helped advise the Hinkle Poster Session which is the psychology research poster session. I was the lead presenter for these projects which meant that I was the point of contact and made sure everything was ready.

Abstract

Humans face many choices in healthy living with food choices being vital in a healthy diet. Decision makers must consider a variety of attributes and options when deciding. We investigated college students' preferences for 16 common snack foods; the snacks ranged in health, taste, convivence, familiarity, and satiation. We looked at two 50/50 "grab bag" gambles with two snacks each, as well as pairs of single snacks. Decision-making has historically been focused on the result of the choice. In our study, we use process tracing methods such as mouse movement, eye fixation location, and self-reported values of snacks and their attributes, in addition to the choice itself. We present results showing that snack food choice is influenced by attention, valuation, and weighing attributions of options. There is evidence of differences in the processes of pairs of single snacks compared to the "grab bag" gambles. This is because of the amount of risk in the two processes. Our results demonstrate how process-tracing methods can extend the knowledge of how decisions are made. Using these results one can predict the individual decision-makers by using decision-making models. Health interventions could potentially use this information to target the public to increase healthy eating.