A recent study conducted by researchers at the Otto-Friedrich-Universität Bamberg has found that information campaigns aimed at reducing meat consumption can lead to a psychological reaction known as “reactance” in many people. This reaction causes individuals to feel restricted in their freedom and, despite being presented with information, they may continue or even increase their problematic behavior. The study also highlights the inefficiency of meat production, which is the most inefficient form of food production and poses a threat to global food security due to its high land requirements. The conventional agriculture used in meat production also incurs high externalized costs.
Numerous information campaigns and brochures have been launched to encourage people to change their behavior and reduce the environmental damage and health risks associated with meat consumption. However, studies have shown that such calls to action have limited effectiveness due to the psychological reactance that people experience. This reactance is caused by the feeling that individuals are being told what to do and are no longer able to make their own decisions. As a result, they may ignore the advice or even increase their problematic behavior.
Researchers at the Otto-Friedrich-Universität Bamberg have investigated how psychological reactance affects attention processes in humans. The study found that individuals who were instructed to reduce their meat consumption experienced higher levels of irritation compared to the control group. The researchers also used a word grid to measure the intensity of reactance and found that those who were particularly irritated by the instruction to reduce their meat consumption associated more meat-related words in the grid. The study suggests that health communication should be designed to minimize reactance or take appropriate steps to adjust attention shifts. Future research will analyze attention mechanisms and their influences on real consumption behavior in more detail.
