Food Captures Attention, but Not the Eyes: An Eye- Tracking Study on Mindset and BMI’s Impact on Attentional Capture by High-Caloric Visual Food Stimuli
Obesity is a worldwide pandemic and theories propose that attentional bias (AB) for food triggers craving and overeating, especially for people with obesity. However, empirical evidence is inconsistent, which may be due to methodological diversity and the double-sided nature of high-caloric palatabl...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Ubiquity Press
2022-02-01
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| Series: | Journal of Cognition |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.journalofcognition.org/articles/210 |
| _version_ | 1818313155803086848 |
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| author | Leonardo Pimpini Sarah Kochs Wieske van Zoest Anita Jansen Anne Roefs |
| author_facet | Leonardo Pimpini Sarah Kochs Wieske van Zoest Anita Jansen Anne Roefs |
| author_sort | Leonardo Pimpini |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Obesity is a worldwide pandemic and theories propose that attentional bias (AB) for food triggers craving and overeating, especially for people with obesity. However, empirical evidence is inconsistent, which may be due to methodological diversity and the double-sided nature of high-caloric palatable foods. That is, these foods simultaneously have a high hedonic and a low health value. So, depending on context and/or emotional state, people’s 'mindset' while viewing foods may alternate between hedonic (taste) and health (calories) values, possibly affecting AB for food in opposite directions. This study tests how mindset and BMI (Body Mass Index) influences AB and food intake. We expect greater AB for food and more food intake in the hedonic compared to the health mindset, especially for people with obesity. Mindsets were induced using short video-clips in two sessions in counterbalanced order. Participants (35 with a healthy-weight-category BMI, 31 with obesity) performed a modified 'Additional Singleton' paradigm where they searched for a neutral target among neutral fillers. On 90% of the trials, either a food or a neutral distractor appeared. Response latencies to the target and eye-movements to the distractor were recorded. Dependent variables included: response latencies, and eye-movement variables on the distractor: fixations (%), 1st fixation duration, dwell-time. Food intake was assessed in a bogus taste test. No significant effects emerged from the eye-movements analysis, whereas the analysis of response latencies showed an AB for food, not significantly moderated by BMI or mindset. Food intake was affected by mindset partly as expected, as participants ate more in the hedonic than in the health mindset when the hedonic mindset was induced in the second session. One AB measure (fixations) correlated positively with food intake. Finally, food captured attention – but not the eyes – and mindset affects food intake partly as expected. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-13T08:29:15Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-cb12685595a245dfaa9f9894d7bc00a9 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2514-4820 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-13T08:29:15Z |
| publishDate | 2022-02-01 |
| publisher | Ubiquity Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Cognition |
| spelling | doaj.art-cb12685595a245dfaa9f9894d7bc00a92022-12-21T23:53:49ZengUbiquity PressJournal of Cognition2514-48202022-02-015110.5334/joc.210229Food Captures Attention, but Not the Eyes: An Eye- Tracking Study on Mindset and BMI’s Impact on Attentional Capture by High-Caloric Visual Food StimuliLeonardo Pimpini0Sarah Kochs1Wieske van Zoest2Anita Jansen3Anne Roefs4Clinical Psychological Science, Maastricht University, MaastrichtClinical Psychological Science, Maastricht University, MaastrichtSchool of Psychology, University of Birmingham, BirminghamClinical Psychological Science, Maastricht University, MaastrichtClinical Psychological Science, Maastricht University, MaastrichtObesity is a worldwide pandemic and theories propose that attentional bias (AB) for food triggers craving and overeating, especially for people with obesity. However, empirical evidence is inconsistent, which may be due to methodological diversity and the double-sided nature of high-caloric palatable foods. That is, these foods simultaneously have a high hedonic and a low health value. So, depending on context and/or emotional state, people’s 'mindset' while viewing foods may alternate between hedonic (taste) and health (calories) values, possibly affecting AB for food in opposite directions. This study tests how mindset and BMI (Body Mass Index) influences AB and food intake. We expect greater AB for food and more food intake in the hedonic compared to the health mindset, especially for people with obesity. Mindsets were induced using short video-clips in two sessions in counterbalanced order. Participants (35 with a healthy-weight-category BMI, 31 with obesity) performed a modified 'Additional Singleton' paradigm where they searched for a neutral target among neutral fillers. On 90% of the trials, either a food or a neutral distractor appeared. Response latencies to the target and eye-movements to the distractor were recorded. Dependent variables included: response latencies, and eye-movement variables on the distractor: fixations (%), 1st fixation duration, dwell-time. Food intake was assessed in a bogus taste test. No significant effects emerged from the eye-movements analysis, whereas the analysis of response latencies showed an AB for food, not significantly moderated by BMI or mindset. Food intake was affected by mindset partly as expected, as participants ate more in the hedonic than in the health mindset when the hedonic mindset was induced in the second session. One AB measure (fixations) correlated positively with food intake. Finally, food captured attention – but not the eyes – and mindset affects food intake partly as expected.https://www.journalofcognition.org/articles/210attentional biasfood intakemindsetobesityeye-trackingbogus taste test |
| spellingShingle | Leonardo Pimpini Sarah Kochs Wieske van Zoest Anita Jansen Anne Roefs Food Captures Attention, but Not the Eyes: An Eye- Tracking Study on Mindset and BMI’s Impact on Attentional Capture by High-Caloric Visual Food Stimuli Journal of Cognition attentional bias food intake mindset obesity eye-tracking bogus taste test |
| title | Food Captures Attention, but Not the Eyes: An Eye- Tracking Study on Mindset and BMI’s Impact on Attentional Capture by High-Caloric Visual Food Stimuli |
| title_full | Food Captures Attention, but Not the Eyes: An Eye- Tracking Study on Mindset and BMI’s Impact on Attentional Capture by High-Caloric Visual Food Stimuli |
| title_fullStr | Food Captures Attention, but Not the Eyes: An Eye- Tracking Study on Mindset and BMI’s Impact on Attentional Capture by High-Caloric Visual Food Stimuli |
| title_full_unstemmed | Food Captures Attention, but Not the Eyes: An Eye- Tracking Study on Mindset and BMI’s Impact on Attentional Capture by High-Caloric Visual Food Stimuli |
| title_short | Food Captures Attention, but Not the Eyes: An Eye- Tracking Study on Mindset and BMI’s Impact on Attentional Capture by High-Caloric Visual Food Stimuli |
| title_sort | food captures attention but not the eyes an eye tracking study on mindset and bmi s impact on attentional capture by high caloric visual food stimuli |
| topic | attentional bias food intake mindset obesity eye-tracking bogus taste test |
| url | https://www.journalofcognition.org/articles/210 |
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