Understanding desire for food and drink: a grounded-cognition approach

Papies, E. K. , Barsalou, L. W. and Rusz, D. (2020) Understanding desire for food and drink: a grounded-cognition approach. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 29(2), pp. 193-198. (doi: 10.1177/0963721420904958)

Abstract

How does desire for food and drink arise in the human mind? We suggest that rewarding simulations, which are based on previous experiences, play a key role. In other words, people think about food and drink in terms of what it feels like to consume them, and this leads to desire. We illustrate this with research using behavioral, physiological, and neuroimaging methods. This work shows that food and drink cues (e.g., words, eating contexts, labels) trigger spontaneous eating and drinking simulations (e.g., thoughts about taste, texture, and enjoyment) and that these simulations affect desire and eating experiences (e.g., cravings, salivation, taste ratings). These simulations can be disrupted or diffused through working memory load or through mindfulness, thus reducing desire. We discuss these findings in the context of simulations in motivated behavior more generally and suggest directions for future research.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Rusz, Ms Dorottya and Barsalou, Professor Lawrence and Papies, Dr Esther
• Authors: Papies, E. K., Barsalou, L. W., and Rusz, D.
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Psychology
• Journal Name: Current Directions in Psychological Science
• Publisher: SAGE
• ISSN: 0963-7214
• ISSN (Online): 1467-8721
• Published Online: 17 March 2020
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © The Authors
• First Published: First published in Current Directions in Psychological Science 29(2):193-198
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons licence