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Open Access
Article
Publication date: 11 July 2018

Sidse Schoubye Andersen and Lotte Holm

This paper aims to present an analysis of the various dimensions of naturalness that shape the consumption practices of parents with young children.

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to present an analysis of the various dimensions of naturalness that shape the consumption practices of parents with young children.

Design/methodology/approach

The study builds on semi-structured interviews with 17 mothers and fathers focusing on parental decision-making in everyday consumption from pregnancy to the first years of the child’s life.

Findings

Naturalness is a tool allowing parents to navigate in a world of risks and part of an everyday consumption practice that constructs and maintains children as vulnerable and parents as responsible. Parents perceive naturalness as something with three dimensions: familiarity, purity and culture. These three dimensions lead to different parental practices around consumption.

Originality/value

The analysis contributes to the authors’ understanding of parenting, childhood, risk, safety and consumption by showing how and why parents of young children construct naturalness as a three-dimensional ideal in their consumption practices.

Details

Young Consumers, vol. 19 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1747-3616

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 5 September 2016

Sarah Hemmerling, Maurizio Canavari and Achim Spiller

The purpose of this paper is to provide insights into European organic consumers’ attitudes towards natural food and in their sensory preference for it. It explores whether there…

1283

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide insights into European organic consumers’ attitudes towards natural food and in their sensory preference for it. It explores whether there is any evidence for a latent dimension that represents consumers’ attitudes towards naturalness and which aspects can be assigned to this dimension. However, the main scope is to investigate whether attitudes towards naturalness are able to predict the liking of natural food.

Design/methodology/approach

Sensory tests of strawberry yoghurt are combined with consumer information obtained by means of a standardised questionnaire. About 1,800 organic consumers from France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and Switzerland were asked to blindly test two strawberry yoghurt samples that differed only in their absence/presence of an aroma additive.

Findings

On average, the consumers revealed a positive attitude towards natural food, but a negative sensory preference for the more natural yoghurt sample. Correlations between these two variables indicate that for most countries one cannot conclude that more naturalness-oriented consumers actually prefer the taste of more naturally flavoured yoghurts. This finding is interpreted as an attitude-liking gap.

Research limitations/implications

More research is necessary in order to clarify the reasons for the attitude-liking gap, since the authors can only speculate about these. Also, suitable data are needed to confirm the assumption made here that the naturalness of strawberry yoghurt can be determined by the degree of flavour intensity, especially against the background that the sensory skills of consumers are usually weak.

Originality/value

No attempt has been undertaken so far to test the claim that natural food products taste better and whether consumers with a positive attitude towards naturalness actually prefer the taste of a natural product over the taste of a more processed one. The present study attempts to fill this gap by exploring the preference for naturalness in a cross-national context.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 118 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 2 March 2023

Hajar Fatemi, Erica Kao, R. Sandra Schillo, Wanyu Li, Pan Du, Nie Jian-Yun and Laurette Dube

This paper examines user generated social media content bearing on consumers’ attitude and belief systems taking the domain of natural food product as illustrative case. This…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper examines user generated social media content bearing on consumers’ attitude and belief systems taking the domain of natural food product as illustrative case. This research sheds light on how consumers think and talk about natural food within the context of food well-being and health.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors used a keyword-based approach to extract user generated content from Twitter and used both food as well-being and food as health frameworks for analysis of more than two million tweets.

Findings

The authors found that consumers mostly discuss food marketing and less frequently discuss food policy. Their results show that tweets regarding naturalness were significantly less frequent in food categories that feature naturalness to an extent, e.g. fruits and vegetables, compared to food categories dominated by technologies, processing and man-made innovation, such as proteins, seasonings and snacks.

Research limitations/implications

This paper provides numerous implications and contributions to the literature on consumer behavior, marketing and public policy in the domain of natural food.

Practical implications

The authors’ exploratory findings can be used to guide food system stakeholders, farmers and food processors to obtain insights into consumers' mindset on food products, novel concepts, systems and diets through social media analytics.

Originality/value

The authors’ results contribute to the literature on the use of social media in food marketing on understanding consumers' attitudes and beliefs toward natural food, food as the well-being literature and food as the health literature, by examining the way consumers think about natural (versus man-made) food using user generated content of Twitter, which has not been previously used.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 125 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 27 January 2021

Clinton Amos, Jesse King and Skyler King

Past research has demonstrated a health halo for food product labels (e.g. organic), resulting in inflated perceptions of a product’s healthfulness (e.g. low fat). While past…

Abstract

Purpose

Past research has demonstrated a health halo for food product labels (e.g. organic), resulting in inflated perceptions of a product’s healthfulness (e.g. low fat). While past studies have focused on labeling and related health claims, the health halo of brand names has scarcely been investigated. This study aims to address this gap by investigating the health halo of brand names featuring morality- and purity-signifiers.

Design/methodology/approach

The current research uses two experiments to examine the health halo of morality- and purity-signifying brand names on perceptions of nutritional and contaminant attributes. Mediation analysis is performed to investigate perceived naturalness as the mechanism for the brand name effects while moderated mediation analysis examines this mechanism across product types (healthy vs unhealthy).

Findings

The findings reveal that both the morality- and purity-signifying brand names produce a health halo on nutritional and contaminant attributes, regardless of product healthiness. Further, mediation and moderated mediation analysis provide evidence for perceived naturalness as the underlying mechanism driving these effects.

Social implications

This research highlights unwarranted consumer inferences made based upon food brand names and, thus has implications for consumers, public policy and marketing managers.

Originality/value

While much health halo research has focused on labeling, this research examines the health halo of two brand name types which symbolically convey either morality or purity. This research provides additional contributions by investigating perceived naturalness as the underlying mechanism for the effects and is one of the few studies to investigate the health halo for both healthy and unhealthy products.

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 5 April 2022

Femke Damen, Ruud Verkerk and Bea Steenbekkers

Adolescence is a period in which autonomy grows and where children develop into independent and active consumers and a period in which their food choices are also becoming more…

2328

Abstract

Purpose

Adolescence is a period in which autonomy grows and where children develop into independent and active consumers and a period in which their food choices are also becoming more autonomous. Snacking is known to increase during the period of adolescence and the snack choice of adolescents is often unhealthy. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to know when adolescents perceive a snack as healthy. As healthiness perception could be linked to the perception of naturalness and sustainability of a snack, these are interesting product characteristics to study as well.

Design/methodology/approach

Semi-structured interviews with 20 adolescents were conducted to characterize their perception of healthiness, naturalness and sustainability. Chocolate snack bars were used as a stimulus product.

Findings

All participants mentioned consuming snacks because they like them. Healthiness was seen as important but was not always a priority in adolescents' snack choices. Naturalness and sustainability were concepts which the adolescents were not aware of or did not perceive as important during snack choice. The adolescents mentioned experiencing natural products to be healthier compared to not natural products. The consequences of the discerned dimensions time, impact and effect of choices were rather limited for this target group.

Originality/value

Understanding the healthiness, naturalness and sustainability perception of chocolate snack bars by adolescents may help to better understand drivers for adolescents' snack choices.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 124 no. 13
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 July 2005

Torben Hansen

The paper proposes to investigate empirically consumers' quality perception of shrimps and cheese.

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Abstract

Purpose

The paper proposes to investigate empirically consumers' quality perception of shrimps and cheese.

Design/methodology/approach

A sample of 320 respondents was included in an experimental design in which two food products, shrimps and cheese, two price‐levels, two levels of purchase involvement, and two types of physical surroundings, elegant and less elegant, were manipulated. The experiments included both simulated buying situations and simulated usage situations.

Findings

The research finds that in the buying situation both experiments perceived price had a positive effect on expected eating quality for high‐involved respondents but not for low‐involved respondents. In the usage situation the effect of expected naturalness on experienced naturalness was in both experiments stronger for high‐involved respondents than for low‐involved respondents. In addition, experienced eating quality positively affected respondents' pleasure‐feeling. The positive effect of experienced eating quality on pleasure‐feeling was stronger for respondents exposed to elegant physical surroundings than for respondents exposed to less elegant surroundings.

Research limitations/implications

This research concentrated on analyzing two food products, fresh‐shelled shrimps and solid cheese. This could mean that the results may suffer from a lack of generalizability. A large cross‐section of products ought to be studied to improve the generalizability of the results. Also, the manipulation of price and physical surroundings were confined to two different levels. Thus, this research offers no specific guidelines on how to set specific prices or how to establish specific physical surroundings for the purpose of manipulating, e.g. consumers' perceived quality.

Practical implications

The results emphasize that food producers and retailers, among others, should seek an understanding of consumers' quality perception process in relation to both the buying and the usage situation.

Originality/value

This paper empirically investigates consumers' quality perception in both buying and usage situations. Also, the paper includes purchase involvement and physical surroundings as moderating variables of the quality perception process.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 107 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 9 February 2024

Fei Hao, Yueming Guo, Chen Zhang and Kaye Kye Sung Kye-Sung Chon

This study aims to investigate the integration of blockchain technology into the food supply chain within the restaurant industry. It focuses on how blockchain can be applied to…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the integration of blockchain technology into the food supply chain within the restaurant industry. It focuses on how blockchain can be applied to enhance transparency and trust in tracking food sources, ultimately impacting customer satisfaction.

Design/methodology/approach

A service design workshop (Study 1) and three between-subjects experiments (Studies 2–4) were conducted.

Findings

Results indicate that blockchain adoption significantly improves traceability and trust in the food supply chain. This improvement in turn enhances customer satisfaction through perceived improvements in food safety, quality and naturalness. This study also notes that the effects of blockchain technology vary depending on the type of restaurant (casual or fine dining) and its location (tourist destinations or residential areas).

Practical implications

The findings offer practical insights for restaurant owners, technology developers and policymakers. Emphasizing the benefits of blockchain adoption, this study guides decision-making regarding technology investments for enhancing customer service and satisfaction in the hospitality sector.

Originality/value

This research contributes novel insights to the field of technology innovation in the hospitality industry. It extends the understanding of signaling theory by exploring how blockchain technology can serve as a tool for signal transmission in restaurant food supply chains.

Details

International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0959-6119

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 August 2023

Edward Shih-Tse Wang and Yu-Jou Weng

Increasing followers' positive word-of-mouth (PWOM) is a critical means through which social media influencers (SMIs) marketers can increase SMIs' follower count. Studies have…

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Abstract

Purpose

Increasing followers' positive word-of-mouth (PWOM) is a critical means through which social media influencers (SMIs) marketers can increase SMIs' follower count. Studies have reported that authenticity and credibility increase followers' PWOM and have identified the dimensions of authenticity (i.e. originality, naturalness and continuity) and credibility (i.e. attractiveness, trustworthiness and expertise). However, the mechanisms underlying the associations among these dimensions are unclear. Drawing from social exchange theory, the authors developed an integrated conceptual model and explored how the dimensions of SMI authenticity affect those of followers' perception of credibility. Moreover, the authors analyzed how followers' perception of credibility affects the followers' PWOM behavior.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors collected 463 valid questionnaires from respondents that followed at least one SMI. Additionally, the authors developed a structural equation model for data analysis.

Findings

The results revealed that the subdimensions of SMI authenticity have different effects on followers' perception of credibility. An SMI's continuity positively affects followers' perceptions of the SMI's trustworthiness and expertise. The naturalness of an SMI positively affects followers' perception of the SMI's attractiveness but nonsignificantly affects followers' perception of the SMI's trustworthiness. Additionally, an SMI's originality positively affects followers' perception of the SMI's attractiveness but negatively affects followers' perception of the SMI's trustworthiness. Finally, followers' perceptions of an SMI's attractiveness, trustworthiness and expertise all positively affect followers' PWOM behavior.

Originality/value

By employing multidimensional constructs, the authors obtained results that provide a comprehensive understanding of the effects of SMI authenticity on the SMI's followers' perception of followers' credibility. These results can be used by SMIs to increase SMIs followers' PWOM by determining which aspects of authenticity and credibility SMIs should develop.

Details

Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics, vol. 36 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1355-5855

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 31 October 2019

Phuong Thanh To and David Grierson

Proximity to nature is essential to a child’s development. Well-designed educational environments are crucial to supporting this proximity, particularly in the early years of…

Abstract

Purpose

Proximity to nature is essential to a child’s development. Well-designed educational environments are crucial to supporting this proximity, particularly in the early years of schooling. The purpose of this paper is to measure children’s experiences of nature within three primary school spaces at various locations in Glasgow, Scotland. The methodology for measuring children’s visual and non-visual sensory experiences is developed to evaluate the connection between naturalness values and spatial environmental qualities across varying “Child–Nature–Distance” ranges.

Design/methodology/approach

The approach associates children’s multiple layers of sensory modalities with particular attributes of the spatial environment within primary schools to determine the level of naturalness that children experience, in both internal and external spaces.

Findings

The study finds that children’s experiences are significantly influenced by factors relating to urban setting, built environment master planning, architectural features and interior design.

Research limitations/implications

Apart from primary school architecture for children, this methodology could be fully developed to the comprehensive human–nature relationship under the impacts of physical features and societal of other diversified environments in a future study. However, the offering reasonable primary school architecture for a proper children’s multi-sensorial experience with natural environment cannot thoroughly established with a quantitative aspect by the present study only. More qualitative research is recommended to examine the process of altering from “cause” to “perceived” nature of users’ cognitions, attitudes and behaviours within the exposure proximity to nature.

Practical implications

The methodology for measuring visual and non-visual sensorial experiences of nature, and its application to children’s learning and leisure spaces within primary school architecture could offer a tool for assessing current schools, and evaluating future design proposals for new schools.

Originality/value

The authors argue that the applicationof this method can support design decision making for refurbishing schools at the micro level, and in planning urban development involving proposals for new schools at the macro level.

Details

Archnet-IJAR: International Journal of Architectural Research, vol. 14 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2631-6862

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 2 August 2021

Michael Santucci

This paper aims to describe an integration of the media naturalness theory, the continuum model of impression formation and the social identity model of deindividuation effects…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to describe an integration of the media naturalness theory, the continuum model of impression formation and the social identity model of deindividuation effects. The goal is to determine the compatibility of the central tenets and propositions of the two theories and reconcile their effects under a unified model that can be used to explain and predict changes in perceptions, attitudes and behaviors arising in computer-mediated interaction.

Design/methodology/approach

A review of the literature was used to determine whether the two theories were compatible. The reconciliation comes by way of a third theory, the motivated tactician theory, which focuses on the effects of cognitive effort on schema use, particularly on those schemas used in social categorization processes.

Findings

It was determined that the two models of focus could be combined via the tenets of the third. The combined model is expected to provide explanatory and predictive capabilities that exceed those of the individual theories and should prove to be relevant in the study of computed-supported collaboration, in the design of collaborative environments and in the analysis of individual and group behaviors in computer-mediated communication.

Research limitations/implications

The current effort describes the main effects derived from the integration and offers four propositions that describe moderating factors that are derived from each of the three theories. The main effects must be tested and validated and, given support, must be extended to determine the validity of the moderating effects predicted by the propositions. Additionally, media naturalness theory is a relatively recent addition to theories of technology and so needs further empirical support for its propositions. As to the behavioral implications, the social identity model of deindividuation effects has yet to be tested with the specific intention of discovering how media characteristics affect self-concept.

Practical implications

The model can be used to inform information system designs that favor desirable behavioral outcomes or to prevent undesirable effects from occurring. For example, emphasis can place on media attributes and system features that individuate decision-makers within group decision support environments when consensus is a primary goal as a means to avoid group thinks and polarization. Conversely, attributes and features that are supportive of social categorization processes and deindividuation effects might be used to emphasize group membership, shared effort and to minimize social loafing or the frequency and intensity of inappropriate disparagement of ideas and contributions.

Social implications

The combined model is principally useful in explaining and predicting human behavior in relation to computer-supported collaborative work such as distributed workgroups and online learning environments. For example, the explanatory elements of the combined theory can be used by managers as a diagnostic tool in problem situations within virtual teams. A specific instance would be to determine why a change to existing systems created a change in work habits. In a more proactive move, managers might use the predicted social categorization effects and subsequent depersonalization, to instill a group identity in an otherwise diverse workgroup.

Originality/value

The combined model is expected to provide explanatory and predictive capabilities that exceed those of the individual theories and should prove to be relevant in the study of computed-supported collaboration, in the design of collaborative environments and in the analysis of individual and group behaviors in computer-mediated communication.

Details

Team Performance Management: An International Journal, vol. 27 no. 5/6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1352-7592

Keywords

1 – 10 of over 1000