Experimental Method For Studying Habitual Behavior In Food Consumption

Abstract: To investigate the process of habit formation in everyday life, a sample of 126 participants (students) chooses an eating and drinking for three periods (weeks). They completed the self-report habit each period and we have recorded their choices. All participants provided sufficient data for analysis and collected experimental data were examined over the study periods (3 weeks). Experimental analysis was used to examine the persistence of habit formation process in the behavior of participants. The game is carried out with 126 students and repeated for three periods. Using experimental laboratory data approach and economic analysis (elasticity), results show that into the presence of labor income and for 126 students, of whom approximately 70% showed that habit formation process is persist in their behaviors along the three periods. The rest (30% of them) who don�t present habit formation in their behavior for the three periods did not materially affect our conclusion about the assumption of habit formation process. Participants to the game persistently spend too much in early periods, they learn rapidly from their own experience to consume the same choice of meals and drinks. Their spending is closely linked to optimal consumption (non conditional on earlier spending) and they choose the same basket of goods in the future horizon, which shows that there�s a habit formation in the behaviors of participants.

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