Why can calorie posting be apparently ineffective? The roles of two conflicting learning effects

Satoru Shimokawa

Food Policy, 2016, vol. 64, issue C, 107-120

Abstract: We investigate why the aggregate effect of calorie posting on calorie consumption can be insignificant by decomposing the learning effect into two conflicting components: a calorie-decreasing effect of learning that one was underestimating caloric content (LUE), and a calorie-increasing effect of learning that one was overestimating caloric content (LOE). Our lab snack-order experiments demonstrate the existence of the LUE effect (−8.3%) and the LOE effect (+4.8%), where the aggregate learning effect is −5.8%. Our results also imply that the LUE can be cancelled out by a positive saliency effect, while the undesirable saliency effect may be mitigated by combining the calorie posting with information about daily calorie needs.

Keywords: Calorie consumption; Calorie posting; Laboratory experiment; Learning (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D81 I12 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jfpoli:v:64:y:2016:i:c:p:107-120

DOI: 10.1016/j.foodpol.2016.09.007

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