- Social Norms Influence Eating Habits
- Throughout high school, there were a lot of social norms that were linked to eating. One of these social norms was to go to McDonalds after our high school football games. So, the majority of the people in my grade would go to McDonalds after the games, eat the food made their, drink soft drinks, and celebrate the big win! It was almost frowned upon if one did not come because people would say things like “everyone is going,” or “what else are you going to do instead.” These tactics worked and convinced most people, including myself to always be present. During the time spent at McDonalds, I personally would eat chicken nuggets, fries, and a big mac, along with drink a milkshake. It is no surprise that none of these things are healthy, but they were satisfying late at night, cheap, and what most other people got as well so I felt I almost had to join in!
- Social Norm Leading to Societal Issues
- The social norm of going to McDonalds definitely can be connected to many societal issues, but two that are relevant to me are finances and obesity. Clearly the options served at McDonalds are not healthy, and have a high fat content. There is also an abundance of food, and as seen in Module 6, this leads to obesity. It is not correct to say that going to McDonalds after games leads directly to obesity, but it is a factor with among other things that can lead to obesity in the future. For instance, there were about 150 people in my class that would go to McDonalds after the games, and this could inspire other bad eating habits and contribute to the epidemic of obesity in the US. Another societal aspect this touches on is a financial aspect. Even though McDonalds is on the cheaper side, going every Friday definitely adds up. I believe that our finances should be more tightly regulated by the average population, and not waste our money on poor habits such as going to McDonalds. But, since it was a social norm at the time, none of these things mattered me because I felt I had to go with the crowd. I think that even though this is a social norm, I don’t think that it should have to be one, or should have to lead to these societal issues. I believe that people should be more strong willed (including myself) and not follow these norms, or not feel the need to buy food and contribute to obesity or financial problems.
- System Diagram Linking the Above Issues
2 thoughts on “The Influence of Social Norms on Food Choice”
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Hi Madison, I am Tenaya. I found your post interesting and relatable. In our small town growing up we also went to a fast food restaurant, but instead of at night we would do it on Friday mornings so we could all meet up and gossip before school started. I never felt obligated to eat the food when we went to Hardees but I did because I liked the food. I agree that it takes strong will but overeating and undereating is something of a personal issue people need to work on as they grow up to overcome that issue. I liked your system diagram and how you gave a solution to the obesity issue. If you would like to read my post here is the link.
http://sites.psu.edu/geog30/2016/02/29/tenaya-mulvey-food-choices/
Hi Madison, my name is Alyssa. I liked reading your post because I also wrote about obesity as a social problem. I agree with you about the pressures of eating out with people and how that can play a big role in what you decide to eat. I also really liked how you included a “How to change this” section to your diagram. I think it’s important to offer solutions when writing about societal issues. Great post! Here’s the link to mine if you wanted to check it out: http://geog030.dutton.psu.edu/2016/03/02/obesity-vs-food-waste/