Korean Journal of Community Nutrition (대한지역사회영양학회지)

The Korean Society of Community Nutrition (대한지역사회영양학회)
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Can Dining Alone Lead to Healthier Menu Item Decisions than Dining with Others? The Roles of Consumption Orientation and Menu Nutrition Information

혼밥이 건강한 메뉴 선택에 미치는 영향: 소비 목적 지향과 메뉴 영양 정보 표시의 역할

  • Her, EunSol (Department of Food and Nutrition, Seoul National University) ;
  • Behnke, Carl (School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, Purdue University) ;
  • Almanza, Barbara (School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, Purdue University)
  • 허은솔 (서울대학교 식품영양학과) ;
  • ;
  • Received : 2021.06.12
  • Accepted : 2021.06.24
  • Published : 2021.06.30
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Abstract

Objectives: Driven by a growth of single-person households and individualized lifestyles, solo dining in restaurants is an increasingly recognizable trend. However, a research gap exists in the comparison of solo and group diners' menu-decision making processes. Based on the self-control dilemma and the temporal construal theory as a theoretical framework, this study compared the ordering intentions of solo vs. group diners with healthy vs. indulgent (less healthy) entrées. The mediating role of consumption orientation and the moderating role of amount of menu nutrition information were further explored to understand the mechanism and a boundary condition. Methods: A scenario-based online survey was developed using a 2 (dining social context: solo vs. with others) × 3 (amount of menu nutrition information: no nutrition information vs. calories vs. calories/fat/sodium), between-subjects, experimental design. Consumers' level of nutrition involvement was controlled. A nationwide survey data (n = 224) were collected from a crowdsourcing platform in the U.S. Data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of covariance, independent t-test, univariate analysis of covariance, and moderated mediation analyses. Results: Findings reveal that solo (vs. group) diners have less (vs. more) intentions to order indulgent menu items due to a more utilitarian (vs. more hedonic) consumption orientation in restaurant dining. Findings also show that solo (vs. group) diners have more (vs. less) intentions to order healthy menu items when the restaurant menu presented nutrition information including calories, fat, and sodium. Conclusions: The findings contribute to the literature of foodservice management, healthy eating, and consumer behavior by revealing a mechanism and an external stimuli of solo vs. group diners' healthy menu-decision making process in restaurants. Furthermore, the findings provide restauranteurs and health professionals with insights into the positive and negative impacts of menu nutrition labelling on consumers' menu-decisions.

Keywords

References

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