Experimental scarcity increases the relative reinforcing value of food in food insecure adults

Crandall, Amanda K.; Temple, Jennifer L.

doi:10.1016/j.appet.2018.05.148

Cited by 21 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…Ratings were completed using a 100 mm visual analogue scale. This scale has been used in prior studies to examine current appetite sensations [7,32].…”

Section: Appetite Sensationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Sample size was determined for the research questions of the parent study [33]. In order to determine if this sample was adequate for the current research question, we examined the relationship between food insecurity status and the relative reinforcing value of food among adults in the control condition of a previous experimental study in our laboratory [7]. After controlling for the same covariates in the current study, this relationship had an R 2 of 0.24.…”

Section: Analytic Planmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Past research has shown that RRV is related to both household income and education level in adults [20]. Finally, experimental evidence has suggested that food insecure adults may experience an increase in their RRV of food in response to financial losses [7]. DD is inversely associated with SES in adults [25].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

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Having less and wanting more: an investigation of socioeconomic status and reinforcement pathology

et al. 2021

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Background In the United states obesity and socioeconomic status (SES), or one’s standing in society based on income, education, and/or occupation, are strongly associated. The mechanisms for this relationship may include having high levels of motivation to get food (reinforcing value of food; RRV) and low levels of inhibitory control (delay discounting; DD) which, when combined, is referred to as reinforcement pathology (RP). We sought to examine the relationships among multiple measures of household SES, RP, and age-adjusted body mass index (zBMI) among adolescents. Methods These data were collected as part of ongoing longitudinal study of risk factors for obesity in 244 adolescents. The adolescents and one parent/guardian had height and weight measured and completed surveys. The adolescents completed an adjusting amount DD task and a computer-based RRV task. Analyses consisted of correlations among measures of SES and RRV, DD, and BMI z-scores. In the case of significant associations, multiple regression models were created with theoretically informed covariates. Results Household income, parent/guardian education, parent/guardian occupation, and food insecurity status were all related to one another. Among the adolescents, a significant portion of the variance in RRV was accounted for by household income after controlling for covariates. For DD, it was parent/guardian education that was most associated after controlling for covariates. Conclusion When low income and low parent/guardian education occur together, there may be an increased risk of RP. Separately, food insecurity was predictive of higher parent/guardian BMI. Future research should continue to explore the effects of low income and parent/guardian education on RP among youth by examining them over time.

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“…Ratings were completed using a 100 mm visual analogue scale. This scale has been used in prior studies to examine current appetite sensations [7,32].…”

Section: Appetite Sensationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Analytic Planmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Having less and wanting more: an investigation of socioeconomic status and reinforcement pathology

et al. 2021

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“…Similarly, whether factors in the home environment influence the development of the RRV of food in children is poorly understood. Food deprivation increases the RRV of food (Epstein et al, 2003;Raynor and Epstein, 2003); and although caloric deprivation is no longer common in the United States, limited access to food resulting from FI may lead to increases in food reinforcement (Crandall and Temple, 2018). Two recent studies with adults support this notion (Crandall and Temple, 2018;Crandall et al, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Food deprivation increases the RRV of food (Epstein et al, 2003;Raynor and Epstein, 2003); and although caloric deprivation is no longer common in the United States, limited access to food resulting from FI may lead to increases in food reinforcement (Crandall and Temple, 2018). Two recent studies with adults support this notion (Crandall and Temple, 2018;Crandall et al, 2020). One study showed increases in the RRV of food in response to experimentally manipulated scarcity among food insecure, but not food secure individuals (Crandall and Temple, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Relative Reinforcing Value of Cookies Is Higher Among Head Start Preschoolers With Obesity

et al. 2021

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The relative reinforcing value (RRV) of food measures how hard someone will work for a high-energy-dense (HED) food when an alternative reward is concurrently available. Higher RRV for HED food has been linked to obesity, yet this association has not been examined in low-income preschool-age children. Further, the development of individual differences in the RRV of food in early childhood is poorly understood. This cross-sectional study tested the hypothesis that the RRV of HED (cookies) to low-energy-dense (LED; fruit) food would be greater in children with obesity compared to children without obesity in a sample of 130 low-income 3- to 5-year-olds enrolled in Head Start classrooms in Central Pennsylvania. In addition, we examined individual differences in the RRV of food by child characteristics (i.e., age, sex, and reward sensitivity) and food security status. The RRV of food was measured on concurrent progressive-ratio schedules of reinforcement. RRV outcomes included the last schedule reached (breakpoint) for cookies (cookie Pmax) and fruit (fruit Pmax), the breakpoint for cookies in proportion to the total breakpoint for cookies and fruit combined (RRV cookie), and response rates (responses per minute). Parents completed the 18-item food security module to assess household food security status and the Behavioral Activation System scale to assess reward sensitivity. Pearson’s correlations and mixed models assessed associations between continuous and discrete child characteristics with RRV outcomes, respectively. Two-way mixed effects interaction models examined age and sex as moderators of the association between RRV and Body Mass Index z-scores (BMIZ). Statistical significance was defined as p < 0.05. Children with obesity (17%) had a greater cookie Pmax [F (1, 121) = 4.95, p = 0.03], higher RRV cookie [F (1, 121) = 4.28, p = 0.04], and responded at a faster rate for cookies [F (1, 121) = 17.27, p < 0.001] compared to children without obesity. Children with higher cookie response rates had higher BMIZ (r = 0.26, p < 0.01); and RRV cookie was positively associated with BMIZ for older children (5-year-olds: t = 2.40, p = 0.02) and boys (t = 2.55, p = 0.01), but not younger children or girls. The RRV of food did not differ by household food security status. Low-income children with obesity showed greater motivation to work for cookies than fruit compared to their peers without obesity. The RRV of HED food may be an important contributor to increased weight status in boys and future research is needed to better understand developmental trajectories of the RRV of food across childhood.

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Financial scarcity and caloric intake: It is not always about motivation

Pfeiffer

Deval

Kardes

2022

J of Consumer Behaviour

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Although prior research has established a cognitive association between perceived financial resources and increased caloric intake, the underlying process is still largely unknown. To date, the psychological influence of financial cues on eating behavior has primarily been explained in terms of goal activation. Perceived scarcity of financial resources is thought to result in a motivational drive to acquire food. In this research, we provide empirical support for this account while exploring how other types of cognitive associations involving semantic constructs (like traits) can also impact eating behavior. Traits are distinguishing qualities or characteristics that are associated with an individual or a group. They are commonly activated spontaneously during social interactions, leading to an associative behavior. Since semantic constructs are not motivational, they influence behavior in the absence of motivation. In this paper, we contribute to the existing literature in several ways. First, we conceptually replicate prior research, providing further support for the behavioral effects of a cognitive association between financial resources and caloric intake. Second, we provide empirical evidence that financial cues influence eating behavior both motivationally and non-motivationally. Lastly, we find that trait constructs and goal constructs can be activated independently and have differential effects on eating behavior.

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Experimental scarcity increases the relative reinforcing value of food in food insecure adults

Cited by 21 publications

References 40 publications

Having less and wanting more: an investigation of socioeconomic status and reinforcement pathology

Having less and wanting more: an investigation of socioeconomic status and reinforcement pathology

The Relative Reinforcing Value of Cookies Is Higher Among Head Start Preschoolers With Obesity

Financial scarcity and caloric intake: It is not always about motivation

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