Are the Claims to Blame? A Qualitative Study to Understand the Effects of Nutrition and Health Claims on Perceptions and Consumption of Food

Nutrition and Health Claims (NHCs) have been found to influence perceptions of food and consumption behaviour. While previous quantitative research has identified factors that may explain these effects, the current study aimed to address the dearth of in-depth exploration as to the underlying reason...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Nutrients 2019-09, Vol.11 (9), p.2058
Main Authors: Benson, Tony, Lavelle, Fiona, McCloat, Amanda, Mooney, Elaine, Bucher, Tamara, Egan, Bernadette, Dean, Moira
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Advertising
Appetite
Behavior
consumer
Consumer attitudes
Consumer Behavior
Consumers
Consumption
Diet
Diet, Healthy
Female
Focus groups
Food
Food consumption
Food Labeling
food labelling
Food production
Functional foods & nutraceuticals
Health
health claims
health halo
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
nudging
Nutrients
Nutrition
nutrition claims
Nutrition research
Nutritive Value
Perceptions
portion size
qualitative
Qualitative research
Quality
Systematic review
Vitamin D
Young Adult
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Summary:Nutrition and Health Claims (NHCs) have been found to influence perceptions of food and consumption behaviour. While previous quantitative research has identified factors that may explain these effects, the current study aimed to address the dearth of in-depth exploration as to the underlying reasons why and how claims may impact upon perceptions and behaviour and the relationships between key factors. Seventy-eight participants took part in 10 focus groups. Discussions were transcribed verbatim and Nvivo 11 was used for thematic analysis. Six themes were developed from the data: 1. Target populations for NHCs; 2. Influence of NHCs on purchasing behaviour; 3. Characteristics/perceptions of products displaying NHCs; 4. Believability of NHCs; 5. Superior yet superficial knowledge; 6. Consumption of products displaying NHCs. Knowledge was a key factor influencing how much individuals believe claims (Believability of NHCs) and their perceptions (Characteristics/perceptions of products displaying NHCs). These perceptions and the characteristics of products displaying claims also impacted believability, as well as purchasing behaviour and consumption. Future research should be cognisant of the role of knowledge and characteristics or perceptions of products in the relationship between NHCs and consumer behaviour, and modelling of these relationships would allow their relative strength to be identified.
ISSN:2072-6643
2072-6643
DOI:10.3390/nu11092058