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Effects of Just-In-Time Food Swap Recommendations
Sponsor: Tilburg University
Summary
This study used a randomized five-condition experiment in a mock online supermarket to investigate whether just-in-time (JIT) food-swap recommendations can improve the healthiness of food choices and whether different types of justification: visibility-only, descriptive/normative language (DNL), social norms, and hedonic enhancement, affect recommendation acceptance and food choice healthiness. The study also examined the psychological mechanisms underlying these effects, focusing on ethe ease of identifying healthy options (EIHO) as a facilitating mechanism and psychological reactance as a potential barrier, and explored whether effects varied by socioeconomic position, food choice motives, and decision-making styles. Ultimately, the study aimed to identify personalization approaches that can make JIT food-swap recommendations effective across the socioeconomic gradient.
Official title: Individual Traits and Food Choice Nudges: Exploring How Socioeconomic and Personal Factors Shape Nudge Effectiveness Across Different Nudge Types
Key Details
Gender
All
Age Range
18 Years - Any
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Enrollment
607
Start Date
2025-11-25
Completion Date
2025-12-22
Last Updated
2026-09-25
Healthy Volunteers
Yes
Conditions
Interventions
No Nudge (control)
No Nudge. Participants are not presented with a pop-up showing a suggested alternative. After making their selection, they are immediately routed back to the start screen, where they can click on the next product category.
JIT Visibility Only Nudge
An alternative product (image, product name, and price) is suggested in the pop-up, accompanied by a header that reads "Alternative".
Descriptive Nutritional Labelling Nudge.
This nudge is the same as the JIT visibility only nudge condition, but with an additional text providing health information on the alternative compared to the original choice (e.g., "This product contains less salt").
Hedonic Enhancement Nudge
This nudge is the same as the JIT visibility only nudge condition, but with an additional descriptive text (e.g., "Delicious and refreshing"). Furthermore, the product image is replaced with an enhanced version that highlights the product's taste and visual appeal.
Social Norm Nudge
This nudge is the same as the JIT visibility only nudge condition, but with an additional descriptive prompt (e.g., "4 out of 5 people chose this") and a visual representation.
Locations (1)
Tilburg University
Tilburg, Netherlands