AFFORDANCE NUDGING: A NEW APPROACH TO FACILITATE HEALTHIER FOOD CHOICES

Abstract

Minor changes in the choice environment, commonly referred to as nudging, can be used to encourage people to make more desirable food choices. This study investigated the effectiveness of a novel nudge that explicitly incorporates the concept of affordances, or possibilities for action, and the potential added effect of positive feedback. Furthermore, this study attempted to investigate potential spillover effects via the mediation of healthy eating attitudes, and provide insight into some potential moderators. In an online grocery shopping experiment, 347 Dutch individuals were randomly assigned to the affordance nudge, affordance nudge with positive feedback, or control condition. The healthiness of food choices was measured in two independent supermarket tasks, the first with the nudge and the second without. The results showed that the nudge had no effect on food choices and this effect was not moderated by healthy eating habits. There was also no additional effect of feedback. Consequently, no spillover effect of the nudge on the products chosen in the second supermarket task was discovered. Positive attitudes toward healthy eating as well as healthy food habits were found to predict the healthiness of the products chosen. Further research is needed to explore the influence of this affordance nudge in a more real-life supermarket setting.