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Plate Size and Color Suggestibility: The Delboeuf Illusion's Bias on Serving and Eating Behavior

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  • Koert Van Ittersum
  • Brian Wansink

Abstract

Despite the challenged contention that consumers serve more onto larger dinnerware, it remains unclear what would cause this and who might be most at risk. The results of five studies suggest that the neglected Delboeuf illusion may explain how the size of dinnerware creates two opposing biases that lead people to overserve on larger plates and bowls and underserve on smaller ones. A countercyclical sinus-shaped relationship is shown to exist between these serving biases and the relative gap between the edge of the food and the edge of the dinnerware. Although these serving biases are difficult to eliminate with attention and education, changing the color of one's dinnerware or tablecloth may help attenuate them. By showing that the Delboeuf illusion offers a mechanistic explanation for how dinnerware size can bias serving and intake, we open new theoretical opportunities for linking illusions to eating behavior and suggest how simple changes in design can improve consumer welfare.

Suggested Citation

  • Koert Van Ittersum & Brian Wansink, 2012. "Plate Size and Color Suggestibility: The Delboeuf Illusion's Bias on Serving and Eating Behavior," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 39(2), pages 215-228.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:jconrs:doi:10.1086/662615
    DOI: 10.1086/662615
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    Cited by:

    1. Isabelle Chalamon & Lydiane Nabec, 2016. "Why Do We Read On-Pack Nutrition Information so Differently? A Typology of Reading Heuristics Based on Food Consumption Goals," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(2), pages 403-429, July.
    2. Brennan Davis & Collin R. Payne & My Bui, 2016. "Making Small Food Units Seem Regular: How Larger Table Size Reduces Calories to Be Consumed," Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, University of Chicago Press, vol. 1(1), pages 115-124.
    3. Hung-Ming Lin & Hui-Yi Lo & Yu-Sung Liao, 2013. "More than just a utensil: The influence of drinking straw size on perceived consumption," Marketing Letters, Springer, vol. 24(4), pages 381-386, December.
    4. Adrien Barton, 2021. "Foundations for an Ontology of Nudges," Post-Print hal-03512325, HAL.
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    6. Liu, Stephanie Q. & Choi, Sungwoo & Mattila, Anna S., 2019. "Love is in the menu: Leveraging healthy restaurant brands with handwritten typeface," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 98(C), pages 289-298.
    7. Dipayan Biswas & Kaisa Lund & Courtney Szocs, 2019. "Sounds like a healthy retail atmospheric strategy: Effects of ambient music and background noise on food sales," Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Springer, vol. 47(1), pages 37-55, January.
    8. Martin Reimann & Deborah MacInnis & Antoine Bechara, 2016. "Can Smaller Meals Make You Happy? Behavioral, Neurophysiological, and Psychological Insights into Motivating Smaller Portion Choice," Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, University of Chicago Press, vol. 1(1), pages 71-91.
    9. Peggy J. Liu & Kelly L. Haws & Karen Scherr & Joseph P. Redden & James R. Bettman & Gavan J. Fitzsimons, 2019. "The Primacy of “What” over “How Much”: How Type and Quantity Shape Healthiness Perceptions of Food Portions," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 65(7), pages 3353-3381, July.
    10. Kallbekken, Steffen & Sælen, Håkon, 2013. "‘Nudging’ hotel guests to reduce food waste as a win–win environmental measure," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 119(3), pages 325-327.
    11. Ilyuk, Veronika, 2018. "Like throwing a piece of me away: How online and in-store grocery purchase channels affect consumers’ food waste," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 20-30.
    12. Just, David R. & Gabrielyan, Gnel, 2018. "Influencing the food choices of SNAP consumers: Lessons from economics, psychology and marketing," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 309-317.
    13. Olivia Petit & Carlos Velasco & Charles Spence, 2018. "Are large portions always bad? Using the Delboeuf illusion on food packaging to nudge consumer behavior," Marketing Letters, Springer, vol. 29(4), pages 435-449, December.
    14. Romain Cadario & Pierre Chandon, 2020. "Which Healthy Eating Nudges Work Best? A Meta-Analysis of Field Experiments," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 39(3), pages 465-486, May.
    15. Szocs, Courtney & Lefebvre, Sarah, 2017. "Spread or stacked? Vertical versus horizontal food presentation, portion size perceptions, and consumption," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 249-257.
    16. Anne Corcos, 2023. "How nudges and marketing, frame time preference “for your own good”: a behavioral model," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-9, December.
    17. Sara Williamson & Lauren G. Block & Punam A. Keller, 2016. "Of Waste and Waists: The Effect of Plate Material on Food Consumption and Waste," Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, University of Chicago Press, vol. 1(1), pages 147-160.
    18. Stephen S. Holden & Natalina Zlatevska & Chris Dubelaar, 2016. "Whether Smaller Plates Reduce Consumption Depends on Who's Serving and Who's Looking: A Meta-Analysis," Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, University of Chicago Press, vol. 1(1), pages 134-146.
    19. Charry, Karine & Tessitore, Tina, 2021. "I tweet, they follow, you eat: Number of followers as nudge on social media to eat more healthily," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 269(C).
    20. Ketron, Seth, 2018. "Perceived Product Sizes in Visually Complex Environments," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 94(2), pages 154-166.
    21. Krishna, Aradhna & Cian, Luca & Aydınoğlu, Nilüfer Z., 2017. "Sensory Aspects of Package Design," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 93(1), pages 43-54.
    22. Adriana V. Madzharov & Suresh Ramanathan & Lauren G. Block, 2016. "The Halo Effect of Product Color Lightness on Hedonic Food Consumption," Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, University of Chicago Press, vol. 1(4), pages 579-591.
    23. Judy Harris & Veronica L. Thomas, 2017. "The Influence of Bundling and Caloric Knowledge on Calories Ordered and Purchase Intent," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 51(1), pages 113-132, March.
    24. Lin, Hung-Ming, 2013. "Does container weight influence judgments of volume?," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 30(3), pages 308-309.
    25. Zhigang, X. & Zongli, Z. & Funing, Z. & Junfei, B., 2018. "The Effect of Preference for Variety and Portion Size on Consumer s Plate Waste in China s Foodservice Sector," 2018 Conference, July 28-August 2, 2018, Vancouver, British Columbia 276951, International Association of Agricultural Economists.

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