Bangs

006463-0001

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How does the presentation and arrangement

of unpackaged food affect the quantity of
food a person consumes?

Kaylee Bangs
Candidate: 006463-0001
Psychology Extended Essay
Word Count: 3,972

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Abstract
Obesity due to overconsumption is a growing problem in todays society. This paper
examines aspects of presentation and arrangement of unpackaged food that affect the
quantity of food a person consumes.

This investigation will answer this question by showing three main aspects of

presentation and arrangement that affect the quantity of food consumed: perceived variety
of food available for consumption, dishware used in conjunction with consumption of food,
and the ability to gauge food already consumed. Each of these aspects will be explored and
supported using a variety of sources and psychological studies. Additionally, the
weaknesses and limitations of major studies will be examined in order to better evaluate
the true validity of these studies in answering and supporting the question at hand.

This essay will conclude by once again showing these three prime and empirically

supported examples of ways in which presentation and arrangement of unpackaged food

affects the quantity consumed. In addition, the conclusion will further justify the
importance of this investigation in the fact that every day consumers can use this
information to change the way in which they present and arrange food at every meal.

Word Count: 189

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Contents
Abstract..2
Introduction....4
Perceived Variety...6
Dishware....9
Ability to Gauge Consumption.13
Conclusion.16
Works Cited17

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Introduction
In America, today, over one third of adults are obese (Overweight and Obesity). In a
country where body image, health, and nutrition are so heavily focused on in the media, the
question often arises, Why are more and more Americans becoming obese?. The answer to this
question is a topic of heated debate. Some argue that Americans sedentary nature leads to
obesity; others claim that the type of food Americans consume is a contributing factor; some say
that obesity is genetic; and still others say that it is the fast paced lifestyle that causes obesity.
Although all these factors may lead to Americans growing stomachs, a fifth factor of obesity
that is the focus of this extended essay is the quantity of food consumed. What can cause an
increase or decrease in the quantity of food consumed during a meal? Research has shown that
visual cues such as presentation and arrangement of unpackaged food can impact the quantity of
food eaten; but how?
This extended essay will focus on answering this question: How does the presentation
and arrangement of unpackaged food affect the quantity of food a person consumes? To begin, it
is necessary to define what presentation and arrangement mean. Presentation, in the world of
food, refers to the way in which food is arranged, designed, or presented (Webster). It is closely
synonymous to the term arrangement, which refers to the way that things or people are organized
for a particular purpose (Webster). Both presentation and arrangement come in play when
serving and consuming unpackaged food from five-star restaurants to our kitchen tables.
Important strategies in presentation and arrangement of food that affect the quantity of
food consumed included the perceived variety of food available, the dishware from which

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unpackaged food is consumed, and whether or not the person consuming the food has a way to
gauge what they have eaten.
In studies conducted by researchers such as Rolls or Wansink, there is a strong
suggestion that when perceived variety of food increases so does intake. When food seems to be
more plentiful, humans have the tendency to consume more. In addition, the dishware that one
eats from plays a role in how much is consumed. The use of a larger forks can cause one to
consume less food (Mishra et al 2012) and drinking out of a shorter yet wider glass leads to less
food consumed than out of a taller, more slender glass (Wansink and van Ittersum 2003). Finally,
when a person chooses to end their meal is another important factor in quantity of consumption,
and the ability to gauge food consumed contributes to the ending of a meal. This is investigated
in studies including Rozin et al 1998. Although these studies show much support of the thesis of
this essay, the weaknesses and limitation of psychological studies must be taken into account
when determining their validly. These weaknesses will be more closely examined throughout the
content of this paper.
The impact of presentation and arrangement of unpackaged food on quantity consumed
can play a strong role in weight gain and weight loss. It is important to investigate the profound
affects of presentation and arrangement on quantity of food consumed in order to better
understand why we eat the quantities we do and how we can change simple things at every meal
in order to have more control over what we consume in our day-to-day lives.

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Perceived Variety
The variety of food that a person perceives has a large impact on the quantity consumed.
The arrangement of food can cause a greater consumption if the food is arranged in such a way
that a greater variety is perceived. In addition, a greater actual variety has the same affect, since,
as Kahn and Wansink suggest, actual variety influences perceived variety and perceived variety
is a tool that consumers use to decide how much they should intake (Kahn and Wansink 2004).
Just as a small children (and even adults) have a hard time choosing just one flavor of ice
cream off of the extensive lists of flavors at chains such as Brusters Ice Cream or Dairy Queen,
it is human tendency to want to have some of each type of food available. Therefore, if a large
variety is perceived, than that desire to try all of the different types of foods leads to an increase
in the quantity of food consumed. This phenomenon has been demonstrated in many different
psychological studies. In addition, when more variety is perceived, a greater availability of food
is assumed to be available for consumption. This greater variety may imply that larger quantities
are more socially acceptable (Kahn and Wansink 2004).
Barbara J. Rolls and colleagues investigated this affect of variety on food intake by
offering subjects flavors of yogurt. Consumers ate significantly more yogurt, about 23%, when
they were offered three different flavors in comparison to when only offered one flavor of
yogurt. These results held consistent even when the three flavors of yogurt were more obscure
(hazelnut, blackcurrant, and orange) and the single yogurt was their favorite flavor (Rolls et. Al
1981). The variety of yogurt offered dramatically impacted the quantity consumed. This occurs
because of sensory specific satiety which refers to our senses getting sated when repeatedly

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experiencing the same stimulus (Mindless Eating 72). Sensory specific satiety drives out desire
to consume initially and consume more until our senses are tired of a specific stimulus.
Moreover, Inman demonstrated this concept of sensory specific satiety in which the appeal of
food just eaten drops while the appeal of uneaten foods remains constant (Inman 2001). Inman
shows that humans have an innate tendency to seek variety, which is primarily due to sensory
stimulation.
In another study, the actual variety of unpackaged food was not changed but the
arrangement; and, therefore, perceived variety was altered. This study was carried out on
international students beginning an MBA program. These students were invited to a movie and
offered free jelly beans. The jelly beans were presented to half of the students in a tray divided
into six parts; each filled with a single flavor of candy. The other half of the students were
offered the jelly beans from an identical six part tray with a mix of flavors in each part. The
second group could not see that there were only six types of jelly beans and, as a result,
perceived a larger variety of candy. They took about twice as many jelly beans as the students
with the organized tray (Kahn and Wansink 2004). This study was slightly altered and repeated
with M&M candies since; unlike jelly beans, the taste of each candy does not change with color.
The researchers gave two subjects bowls of M&Ms to eat during a movie. One bowl had seven
colors of candy and the other had ten. Although all M&Ms taste exactly alike, the person with
ten colors ate 43 more M&Ms than the other subject (Kahn and Wansink 2004). In both of these
studies by Kahn and Wansink, when perceived variety of candy was increased, the quantity of
food consumed increased as well. Again, when examining these studies, it is necessary to point
out limitations and weaknesses. The researchers point out that potential for self-generated
validity runs highs and might tend to inflate results (Kahn and Wansink 2004). All mental

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processes are not accounted for in these studies; and, therefore, the attribution of greater quantity
of candies consumed may be placed too much on perceived variety and not enough on other
processes that may influence these findings.
The perceived variety of food, as demonstrated, has a significant impact on the quantity
of food that a person consumes. Rolls et al 1981 and Inman 2001 have shown how the concept of
sensory specific satiety can cause a consumer to eat more when there is a greater variety
available. A larger variety means that the senses will be stimulated over a longer period of time;
and, therefore, a greater quantity of food will be consumed before senses become bored of
consumption. Kahn and Wansink have also demonstrated this phenomena of greater variety
increasing intake and explain that it is human tendency to want to try all types of food available
and, when there is a greater perceived variety, consumers may believe that it is more acceptable
to eat larger portions. Although these studies show many different debatable ideas behind the
cause of this phenomenon, they all commonly demonstrate how a greater variety of food results
in a larger quantity of food consumed.

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Dishware
A second factor that has an impact on the quantity of food consumed is the dishware
including but not limited to, bowls, glasses, and forks that a person eats with. Dishware can
create visual illusions that trick our eyes and minds into thinking we have consumed more or less
than we actually have. Dishware is something that is easy for the everyday person to change in
order to help avoid these food illusions or use them to their advantage in their daily lives.
Dishware can trick everyday consumers and even the most skilled of drink of drink servers
(bartenders) (Wansink and van Ittersum 2005). However, as Wansink points out himself, this
study has some serious implications due to the natural setting used for the research. The
researchers did not measure the capacity of the glasses during their controlled field study. In
addition, no process measures were examined so the bartenders thought processes were
interpreted only by the minds of the experimenters. This could lead to some issues concerning
experimental bias in which the experimenters make the results fit their hypothesis. Although in
this study, dishware appears to be one aspect of presentation that plays a very significant role in
the quantity of unpackaged food consumed, it is not fool proof.
In a study done in 2012, tables at a restaurant were either set with small forks or large
forks. As customers came into the restaurant they were randomly seated at a table and then were
asked for their order from the restaurant menu. After the food was prepared, plates were
weighed before being brought out and again after the customers had left the restaurant. Results
showed that when eating with a larger fork, the weights of the food left on the plate was higher,
meaning these customers had generally consumed less than their companions with smaller forks.
The researchers explain this by suggesting that diners focus on visual cues of whether they are

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making any dent in the amount of food on their plates to assess goal progress (the goal being
defined as satiating hunger). The diners with larger forks can clearly see the effect of each bite
on the food left on their plate while the change in food left is much less dynamic with each bite
when eating with a smaller fork. Therefore, the consumers with the smaller forks end up eating
more to satisfy their hunger (Mishra and Masters 2012). This study demonstrates how a
consumers eating utenseil impacts their bite size, which, in turn, impacts the quantity of food
consumed. This study counters finding of many psychological studies including some referenced
in this essay such Wansink, van Ittersum, and Painter 2006 in which smaller utensils result in
less food consumed due to the fact that that using smaller utensils to serve oneself often means
smaller portions. However, it is important to realize that this particular study deals with utensils
being consumed from during the meal, whereas other studies that oppose this deal with utensils
in which the meal is initially served from rather than used to eat with (Wansink, van Ittersum,
and Painter 2006).
Furthermore, the size and shape of glasses and dishes from which food is consumed has
an impact on quantity as well. This is explained due to the way in which humans process objects
size based on its dimensions. Humans have a tendency to focus much more on height rather than
width. Ganel and Goodale conducted a study observing the visual perception of an object in
which they discovered that a given dimension of an object cannot be perceptually isolated from
the other dimensions. The scientist tested their participants ability to make perceptual judgments
of width while ignoring length of objects. They found that the participant could not ignore the
length when making these judgments (Ganel and Goodale 2003).
Along the same lines, classical visual illusion tests in psychology can further explain how
a person may under or overestimate object size. One such test is the one involving bisecting

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horizontal and vertical lines that are equal in length. These lines are shown and a person is asked
to estimate which line is longer. People generally estimate the vertical line as longer (Robinson).
This illusion is often first attributed to Oppel (1885) and can explain why a person often
consumes more from wider dishware rather than taller dishware. Human brains have the
tendency to over focus on the height of objects and pay less attention to width which can lead to
a person underestimating what they have consumed out of a shorter, wider glass and
overestimating what they have consumed out of a taller, thinner glass. In addition, a common
circle illusion can help to explain the effect of dishware on quantity consumed. In this illusion
two sets concentric circles are shown and the inner-circle in both sets is the same size yet the
outer circles differ in size. The same size circle placed inside the smaller outside circle is thought
to be larger than its counterpart in the larger circle. This illusion shows the effects of size of
dishes on the appearance of portion size. The portions will look larger on a smaller plate and
smaller on a larger plate (Bernard, Lyman).
Brian Wansink and Koert van Ittersum test these illusions in their 2005 study
demonstrating the effect of the shape of a glass and the amount alcohol poured. Wansink and van
Ittersum traveled to bars across Philadelphia and asked 45 professional bartenders to pour them
drinks without the use of a measuring cup or shot glass. They gave the bartenders either a tallskinny, 11-ounce highball glass, or a short, fat 11-ounce tumbler and were asked to pour one shot
(1.5 ounces) for a drink. Those given the tall, skinny glasses were on target with an average 1.6
ounces poured; but the bartenders with the shorter glass poured an average of 37% more than
their target: 2.1 ounces. The scientist then repeated the study with another 41 bartenders
instructing them to take their time when pouring. Even with this instruction, the bartenders still
over poured. This study shows the effect of the horizontal-vertical illusion in relation to

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consumption. Professional drink pourer or not, using a shorter and wider glass will cause a
person to pour and consume more than if they were using a taller and skinnier glass.
In addition, the size of a bowl eaten from and the size of the utensil used to serve food
with can also impact the quantity of food consumed. Ph.D. students and professors of Nutritional
Science were invited for an ice cream party and were given either a 17-ounce bowl or 34-ounce
bowl. Each student went through a self-serve line of four different types of ice-cream. In addition
to the variation of bowl size, the researchers varied the size of the scoops that were in the icecream (2 or 3 ounce scoops). All bowls were weighed at the end of the serving line. Students
with the 34-ounce bowls took 31% more ice cream and people with a 34-ounce bowl and a 3ounce scoop took 57% more than people with a 17-ounce bowl and 2-ounce scoop (Wansink,
van Ittersum, and Painter 2006). This study demonstrates the effects of utensils and bowl size on
quantity consumed and has a practical correlation to family style diners where a large portion of
food is placed on the table family member to retrieve their own servings. The utensil in this
communal bowl and dishware being used can affect how much one consumes.
Dishware is a very major part in presentation of unpackaged food that plays a role in the
quantity of food consumed. Dishware used is usually well thought out in restaurants and often
overlooked in our homes. As demonstrated through these studies, illusions created by dishware
can affect all different types of people, even those that serve and study food for a living. In order
to best avoid overeating on a daily basis, the everyday family can purchase smaller bowls and
plates and replace their short wide glasses with tall and skinny ones. Dishware is used hand in
hand with consumption and has a large impact on the quantity of food consumed.

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Ability to Gauge Food Already Consumed

The ability to gauge food consumed can also affect the total amount of food eaten. This is
due to the notion that knowing what you have already eaten leads a person to decide (consciously
or subconsciously) when to end a meal.
Rozin and colleagues conducted a study that supports this idea that memory for what has
recently been eaten is a substantial contributor to the onset or cessation of eating of a meal.
Rozin came to this conclusion by studying two amnesic patients along with two control patients
who had reasonably intact memories. The amnesic patients consumed multiple meals with no
memory of what they had just eaten and only stopped consuming when massively overloaded
with food. They also were asked to rate their hunger prior to each meal and generally claimed
that they were just as hungry after each meal as they had been before their first meal. In
comparison, the control subjects refused to eat more than one meal often laughing when offered
a second meal soon after their first (Rozin et al 1998). This seems to show that a memory of what
has been previously eaten substantially impacts how much one will consume. The limited
number of participants tested in this study serves as its main weakness and omission as it makes
the study less representative of the population at large.
This idea of memory of what has been eaten having an effect on quantity
consumed ties in closely with presentation and arrangement of food. People, Americans
especially, tend to rely on visual and external cues rather than internal cues to decide when to
stop eating (Wansink 53); and, Amnesic or not, it is easy to forget how much food you have
eaten without a clear visual method to gauge food eaten. Whether or not already eaten food is
cleared from the table, or if our soup bowls are constantly refilled, are both aspects of

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presentation and arrangement that affect our ability to gauge what has already been consumed
and, therefore, affect the quantity of food consumed in total.
Many types of food are eaten in their entirety without much evidence of what has been
eaten left behind. However, chicken wings leave behind bones that can serve as a visual gauge of
food consumed. Brian Wansink and Collin Payne demonstrated the effects of having a visual
cue, such as chicken bones, as a means to control quantity of food consumed. Wansink and
Payne invited graduate students to a party in which a buffet of wings was found in the middle of
the room and the students were able to help themselves. In one half of the room waiters were told
to bus tables constantly throughout the night; and, in the other half they were told to ignore the
pilling bones on the tables. Results showed that the people at the un-bussed tables ate an average
of five chicken wings a piece, and the students at the bussed tables ate an average of seven
(Wansink and Payne 2007). This study further demonstrates that having a visual and constant
reminder of what has already been eaten can decrease the quantity of food consumed. Whether of
whether not a waiter, party host, or parent choices to clear dirty dishes and scraps of food
throughout the meal can have quite an impact on how much guests consume.
It is very hard for people to estimate what they have eaten without having something to
constantly remind them. Just overnight, many forget how much they had eaten at the previous
days dinner. Low intakes tend to be overestimated and high intakes tend to be underestimated
(Faggiano et al 1992). This means that the more someone eats; the less they think they have
eaten. It is extremely important to have a visual gauge to know how much has already been
consumed in order to control consumption. However, what happens if that visual gauge that
Americans and others rely so heavily on is deceiving? What if glasses and bowls are constantly
being refilled during a meal?

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One study tests the effects of constant refilling of a soup bowl. Some students were given
a standard 18-ouce bowl of tomato soup and others, unknowingly, had a bowl with a tube
connected to it that constantly refilled the bowl of soup. Prior to consumption, the researchers
asked the students when they would decided to stop eating and the vast majority (81%) claimed
they would use external or visual cues rather than internal cues to decide when to stop eating
claiming theyd stop when the bowl was empty, or half empty. The students with the refillable
bowls ended up eating around 73% more than students with normal bowls but didnt rate
themselves as any fuller than the other students (Wansink, Painter, and North 2005). Due to the
fact that many people rely on external rather than internal cues to gauge hunger, this study has
demonstrated that it is very easy to end up consuming large quantities when a persons means of
gauging what they have consumed is distorted. This study proves problematic in the fact that the
students were surveyed before the experiment which certainly could have an affect on when they
would stop eating; the thought of only ceasing consuming their soup when the bowl was emptied
to a certain level was in their mind before the experiment even started.
Presentation and Arrangement have an impact on quantity of food consumed when it
comes to ones ability to gauge what has already been consumed. Aspects of presentation and
arrangement that affect ability to gauge food consumed include the clearing of a table during a
meal, refilling of glasses and bowls and more. Since many people rely on external cues rather
than internal to decide when and how much they should eat, having a way to keep track of what
has already been consumed can greatly affect the quantity of consumption.

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Conclusion
The presentation and arrangement of unpackaged food has a significant impact on the
quantity of food consumed during a meal. These aspects of presentation and arrangement often
are overlooked in everyday lives where we rely on so much more than a growling stomach to tell
us what to eat, when to eat it, and how much to consume. A large quantity of consumption can
surely be a prime cause of the growing numbers of obese Americans, and it is time to discover
why we often consume as much as we do and what can affect that consumption.
Through research, it is apparent that three specific aspects of presentation and
arrangement play a part in the quantity of food consumed: perceived variety, dishware, and
ability to gauge what has been eaten. Although it is not all cut and dry, a greater perceived
variety does appear to result in a greater amount of food consumed; different shapes and sizes of
dishware have a large impact on what is eaten; and whether or not we can gauge what we ate can
result in large differences in the quantity of food consumed.
Body image, whether justifiable or not, certainly affects our quality of life everyday, as
does health. Overconsumption of food often leads to obesity, health problems, and often a less
self-satisfactory body image. All of these factors accumulate to cause a lower feeling of self
worth and, thus, quality of everyday life. It is very important to discover things that the common
man can change easily in order to help fight the tendency to over consume. In the attempt to
start eating less, one can simply buy less variety of food, replace their short drinking glasses with
taller and skinnier ones, and find a way to easily gauge what they have eaten. Adjusting and
playing with presentation and arrangement of unpackaged food should not just be a job left to
chefs at high quality restaurant; it should become something that is commonplace in every
household in the attempt to improve health and happiness.

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Elio Riboli and Rudolf Kaaks. Validation of a Method for the Estimation of Food
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Megson, and Rachel Gunary (1981) .Variety in a Meal Enhances Food Intake in
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Rozin, Paul, Sara Dow, Morris Moscovitch and Suparna Rajaram. What Causes Humans to
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