Role of Learning Food Preferences - Full Essay Plan!

Process of learning via Classical and Operant Conditioning

Classical Conditioning: Flavour-flavour learning (learning through association)

We develop a preference for a new food because of its association with a flavour we already like. Because of our innate preference for sweetness, we learn to prefer many new foods by sweetening them.
E.g.) porridge and yogurt both become immediately more acceptable after sugar is added to them.

According to flavour-flavour learning principles, this association eventually leads to liking a new food on its own.

Operant Conditioning: (learning through reinforcement)

Reinforcement can be negative or positive.
Parents encourage their children to eat their vegetables by rewarding them with a sweet (positive reinforcement).
Also, children learn to eat certain foods in fear of being punished (negative reinforcement).

This coercive approach is not as effective as classical conditioning in terms of building food preferences.

Social Influences

Social Learning theory - in terms of modelling and imitation.

Children readily acquire the food preferences of role models they observe eating certain foods - especially if role model appears to be rewards or someone child identifies with (teacher/parent)

It's a adaptive function as it endures children eat foods that are obviously safe as others are eating them without harmful effects.

IMPORTANT as without modelling toddlers can do and attempt to eat potentially dangerous foods.

Cultural Norms: (one powerful cultural influence on food preferences)

e.g. Example of attitudes towards a 'proper meal'. Older generation says it has to include 'meat and 2 veg.' The 'rule' that main Sunday meal has to be roast dinner is common in British households.

Meat-Eating:
Many culturally determined food preferences centre around meat. Cultural tradition in Britain and France etc. to eat every part of animal (offal: liver, heart, kidneys) is common preference in those countries. In America it is much less the case, most consume a lot of meat inform of steaks, but have strong aversion to offal.

Culture and Learning:
Influence which food parents present to their children. Learning processes such as flavour-flavour learning and vicarious reinforcement then establish these culturally validated preferences. We associate many foods we eat and enjoy as adults with feelings of security and happy experiences growing up. May be linked to memory to enjoyable memory.

Further Possible AO1 Points + Supporting Research for AO3 content:

Family Influences:
Most obvious within the family and childhood. Parents food preferences have powerful effect on those children, not least as parents are 'gate-keepers' of their children's eating.

Peer Influences: (Birch - 1980)
Arranged for participant children to be placed at school lunchtimes next to 3-4 other children who had…