A Food Affair – A Study on Interventions to Stimulate Positive Consumption Behavior Katrien Cooremans 2018 Advisors: Prof. Dr. Maggie Geuens, Prof. Dr. Mario Pandelaere Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Ghent University in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Business Economics ii DOCTORAL JURY Dean Prof. Dr. Patrick Van Kenhove (Ghent University) Prof. Dr. Maggie Geuens (Ghent University & Vlerick Business School) Prof. Dr. Mario Pandelaere (Virginia Tech & Ghent University) Prof. Dr. Anneleen Van Kerckhove (Ghent University) Prof. Dr. Hendrik Slabbinck (Ghent University) Prof. Dr. Erica van Herpen (Wageningen University) Prof. Dr. Robert Mai (Grenoble Ecole de Management) iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am truly grateful to my promotor, Maggie Geuens, who took a chance on me and gave me the opportunity to start working at the department of Marketing and to my co-promotor Mario Pandelaere, who took me on in a time of ‘financial’ crisis. I am especially grateful for their belief in me throughout this entire journey. I might not be your average PhD researcher, but they always gave me the space and confidence to follow my interests and pursue my ideas. I am grateful to the members of the exam committee for their insightful comments and for the questions they raised. These will certainly benefit my (hopefully) forthcoming papers and I already believe they brought them to a higher level. I feel very grateful for my colleagues and ex-colleagues for making our department such an amazzzing place to work at. And especially my office mates for always being able to turn my frown upside down. I am also grateful for my loving friends for their continued interest and always asking “how’s it going with your thesis?” Thank you mom, dad and big bro for always showing a genuine interest, even though it was often hard to explain what I was doing exactly. I am so happy I can make you guys proud of me and I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you. And last, but most certainly not least, I am grateful for my boyfriend, partner in crime, coach and love of my life Sven, for always being there, for giving me courage when I was doubting myself and for lifting me up when I was down. Without you I would not have completed this obstacle course the way I have. THANK YOU ALL! iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .............................................................................................................. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................................................... v LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................................ ix LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................................... x LIST OF APPENDICES ................................................................................................................... xi NEDERLANDSTALIGE SAMENVATTING .................................................................................. 1 SUMMARY IN ENGLISH ............................................................................................................... 4 CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................... 10 1. Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 10 2. The Food Choice Process ..................................................................................................... 11 2.1 Culture as an important life course factor ..................................................................... 13 2.2 Value negotiations ......................................................................................................... 14 2.3 Strategies ....................................................................................................................... 15 3. Positively influencing the food consumption process .......................................................... 18 3.1 Stimulating healthy weights .......................................................................................... 18 3.2 Stimulating sustainability .............................................................................................. 19 4. Dissertation outline ............................................................................................................... 20 5. References ............................................................................................................................. 24 CHAPTER II: SAME SAME BUT DIFFERENT: ......................................................................... 34 USING ANTHROPOMORPHISM IN THE BATTLE AGAINST FOOD WASTE ...................... 34 1. Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 35 2. Conceptual Background ........................................................................................................ 38 2.1 Physical Appearance and Product Expectations ............................................................ 38 2.2 Anthropomorphism as an Intervention .......................................................................... 41 2.3 Environmental Concern ................................................................................................. 43 3. Study 1 .................................................................................................................................. 44 3.1 Design ............................................................................................................................ 45 3.2 Procedure and Measures ................................................................................................ 45 3.3 Results and Discussion .................................................................................................. 46 4. Study 2 .................................................................................................................................. 48 v 4.1 Design ............................................................................................................................ 49 4.2 Procedure and Measures ................................................................................................ 49 4.3 Results and Discussion .................................................................................................. 50 5. Study 3 .................................................................................................................................. 53 5.1 Design ............................................................................................................................ 53 5.2 Procedure and Measures ................................................................................................ 54 5.3 Results and Conclusion ................................................................................................. 54 6. Study 4 .................................................................................................................................. 56 6.1 Design ............................................................................................................................ 56 6.2 Procedure and Measures ................................................................................................ 56 6.3 Results and Discussion .................................................................................................. 57 7. General Discussion ............................................................................................................... 60 7.1 Theoretical Implications ................................................................................................ 61 7.2 Consumer, Public Policy, and Managerial Implications ............................................... 62 7.3 Limitations and Further Research.................................................................................. 64 8. References ............................................................................................................................. 66 9. Appendices ............................................................................................................................ 74 9.1 Appendix A. Stimuli ...................................................................................................... 74 9.2 Appendix B. Study 4 Store ............................................................................................ 76 CHAPTER III: CROSS-NATIONAL INVESTIGATION OF THE DRIVERS OF OBESITY: RE- ASSESSMENT OF PAST FINDINGS AND AVENUES FOR THE FUTURE ............................ 80 1. Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 81 2. Material & Methods .............................................................................................................. 85 2.1 Data Collection .............................................................................................................. 85 2.2 Measures ........................................................................................................................ 87 2.3 Data Analyses ...............................................................................................................