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Using a choice experiment with insights from laddering technique to reveal consumer preferences towards the acceptance of functional foods

Bitzios, Michail (2011) Using a choice experiment with insights from laddering technique to reveal consumer preferences towards the acceptance of functional foods. Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) thesis, University of Kent. (doi:10.22024/UniKent/01.02.94215) (KAR id:94215)

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https://doi.org/10.22024/UniKent/01.02.94215

Abstract

This research brings together, into one powerful analytical tool, two methodologies, Laddering Technique (L.T.) and Choice Experiment (C.E.), which complement each other nicely, in an 'attempt to examine consumers buying motives in relation to bread. The incentive to explore consumers' "black box" was given by the fact that changes in relation to nutritional issues have become apparent. The case of bread, particularly, attracts the attention of research as a product widely consumed that, however, has not been given much attention by researchers. L.T. approaches the subject from the psychological point of view and explores how people relate products with their personal values. L.T. was implemented so as to gain richer understanding as to how people translate product's characteristics into indicative connotation with respect to themselves. It has also created the basis for the second part of research by informing the attributes used in the C.E. The data was generated with the use of questionnaire that was completed by a small sample of individuals. The results revealed that bread type and the perceived bread healthiness are among the most important aspects consumers consider when buying bread. C.E. was used to examine how the inclusion of a functional ingredient affects consumer attitudes towards bread. An important feature of the C;E. design was the inclusion of the Dutch Eating Behavioural Ouestionnaire (D.E.B.O.) to collect information on participants underlying eating behaviours. The survey instrument employed a single postal mail shot. The results showed - again - that bread type is a major factor in determining choice and that the inclusion of a functional ingredient returned relatively small measures of value. The estimation of a Latent Class Model (L.C.M.) revealed differences in W.T.P. between segments. Also, segment membership can be partly explained by the D.E.B.O. Finally, an important finding is that respondents hold a stronger preference for a simple health statement compared or in addition to the benefits resulting from consuming a product that includes functional ingredients.

Item Type: Thesis (Doctor of Philosophy (PhD))
Thesis advisor: Haddock-Fraser, Janet
Thesis advisor: Fraser, Iain M
DOI/Identification number: 10.22024/UniKent/01.02.94215
Additional information: This thesis has been digitised by EThOS, the British Library digitisation service, for purposes of preservation and dissemination. It was uploaded to KAR on 25 April 2022 in order to hold its content and record within University of Kent systems. It is available Open Access using a Creative Commons Attribution, Non-commercial, No Derivatives (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/) licence so that the thesis and its author, can benefit from opportunities for increased readership and citation. This was done in line with University of Kent policies (https://www.kent.ac.uk/is/strategy/docs/Kent%20Open%20Access%20policy.pdf). If you feel that your rights are compromised by open access to this thesis, or if you would like more information about its availability, please contact us at ResearchSupport@kent.ac.uk and we will seriously consider your claim under the terms of our Take-Down Policy (https://www.kent.ac.uk/is/regulations/library/kar-take-down-policy.html).
Subjects: H Social Sciences
Divisions: Divisions > Division of Human and Social Sciences > School of Economics
SWORD Depositor: SWORD Copy
Depositing User: SWORD Copy
Date Deposited: 20 Sep 2022 14:55 UTC
Last Modified: 20 Sep 2022 14:56 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/94215 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)

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