Multitasking While Grocery Shopping Can Hinder Healthy Decisions
We know not to text and drive. Then it was don’t text and run. Now research finds multitasking on our cell phones could pose problems at the grocery store too.
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Multitasking While Grocery Shopping Can Hinder Healthy Decisions
We know not to text and drive. Then it was don’t text and run. Now research finds multitasking on our cell phones could pose problems at the grocery store too.
In a 2016 study published in the Journal of Retailing, researchers set up grocery shopping scenarios to determine how multitasking while shopping effects purchasing decisions. First, 227 college students were told to shop for snacks that totaled 500 calories or less. Half the students listened to a voicemail while shopping, while the other half shopped distraction-free. In a second trial, 119 shoppers in Paris were asked to choose a low-calorie pasta sauce for a friend on a diet. Some shoppers listened to a recording while navigating the store, others did not.
Before shoppers hit the aisles, researchers also manipulated th