A waiting time for snacks to protect yourself? Vending machines that give you a 25-second reconsideration period after choosing an unhealthy snack before it comes out of the machine. Sensible or mega annoying?
Waiting time for snacks
If I want sweet Harlequins and you make me wait 25 seconds until the bag of delight falls into the tray, several things can happen:
- I start to salivate, thinking about the first sweet, soft licorice and how quickly I’ll rip open the bag
- I get quite irritated
- I miss the train
On the other hand, I recently wrote about the role of impulsivity in eating unhealthy food. So maybe it’s not such a crazy idea after all.
Researchers from Rush University Medical Center in Chicago designed a vending machine with a 25-second waiting period for unhealthy snacks. During this waiting time, the choice can be changed to a healthier alternative that is immediately available. The food itself is clearly divided into healthy and unhealthy snacks using a color system. The waiting time for unhealthy choices is indicated by an LED screen.
The researchers hope to reduce the number of impulse purchases with this.
Junk food is often immediately available and convenient. Having to wait for something makes it less desirable….Research shows that humans strongly prefer immediate gratification, and this preference influences choices and behaviour in daily life.
Dr Brad Appelhans
Due to the large number of vending machines, these could have a wide reach and be the most available source of ’empty calories’. Since they are not likely to disappear from the streetscape soon, this could prove to be an effective method to offer a healthier alternative. Previous attempts mainly consisted of removing unhealthy choices, which affected the freedom of choice and the profit of the owner.
To test the system, the researchers placed six of these machines last summer. Besides the waiting time system, they also tested with a 20-cent discount on healthy alternatives and a 20-cent ‘tax’ on unhealthy choices. All three systems were found to promote the purchase of healthy alternatives. With about 5% in the case of the waiting time system. Unlike the discount or tax, the waiting time system does not cost the operator any turnover and profit.
It is not mentioned how many machines were destroyed during testing.
Waiting time for snacks in the supermarket
At my previous workplace, I would handle it lean; first order my licorice and then start the coffee machine next to it for a cappuccino. Why wait? Nowadays, I work from home, so I wondered if I should equip my fridge with such a system. It makes more sense to ensure there’s no junk in my fridge. But what if supermarkets operated with such a system? Then you’d have to buy healthy food to avoid still being busy with Saturday’s groceries on Monday. Benches with magazines and wifi in the frozen food section where people wait 3 hours for fries with frikandels.
Let’s first see how long those machines last.
References
- prweb.com/releases/2017/03/prweb14171045.htm
