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OpenTrials
Completed

NCT Number: NCT03337633

Effects of Restaurant Menu Design on Food Ordering Outcomes

High cognitive load activities can influence energy intake from food. It is unknown how restaurant menu designs may affect patrons in terms of cognitive demand and subsequent ordering of food.Objective: Our objective was to develop and experimentally test menu designs that differ in cognitive load to test the subjective and objective stress measures on food ordering.

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Key information

Conditions

Food Preferences Behavior Feeding Behavior

Age range

19 year–35 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

About this study

For the first experiment, a parallel randomized trial of healthy young adults (n= 30) was conducted to compare ordering from one of two menu designs (easy - E, hard - H) developed in a prior pilot study. In the second experiment, restrained eaters were specifically recruited and asked to fast before the experiment to determine the influence of cognitive load of menus on energy ordered (n=31). Galvanic skin response was used as an objective proxy for relative cognitive load, and questionnaires were used to assess perceptions of the menus. The main outcomes were the number of items ordered and total energy of the items ordered (in kilocalories).

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Experiment 1

Inclusion criteria

  • Normal vision or corrective lenses
  • Normal hearing or a hearing aid
  • A moderate level of English proficiency or greater
  • Free from current food restrictions

Exclusion criteria

  • Unwilling/uninterested in participation
  • Currently taking any β-blocker medications
  • Any serious skin conditions on the hands (because of galvanic skin sensors worn for the protocol)

Experiment 2

Inclusion criteria

  • Normal vision or corrective lenses
  • Normal hearing or a hearing aid
  • A moderate level of English proficiency or greater
  • Free from current food restrictions
  • Qualifying as a restrained eater by the Cognitive Restraint scale on the Eating Inventory (score of 6 for men and 10 for women)

Exclusion criteria

  • Unwilling/uninterested in participation
  • Currently taking any β-blocker medications
  • Any serious skin conditions on the hands (because of galvanic skin sensors worn for the protocol)

Treatment and study plan

Menu design

Behavioral

Participants were given 5 minutes to order a hypothetical meal from the assigned test menu by circling all items they wanted to order.

Primary outcomes

  1. Total Number of Items Ordered

    Time frame: During the 5-minute menu ordering task

    Total number of items ordered off assigned menu

  2. Total Energy of Items ordered

    Time frame: During the 5-minute menu ordering task

    Total Energy (kcals) of items ordered off assigned menu

Secondary outcomes

  1. Subjective ratings of difficulty of using assigned menu to order a meal

    Time frame: Immediately (1 minute) following the 5-minute menu ordering period

    Assessed by NASA Task Load Index questionnaire

  2. Galvanic Skin Response

    Time frame: During the 5-minute menu ordering task

    An objective proxy for relative cognitive load; this measure has been shown to be positively correlated with psychological stress or cognitive challenge as mediated by sympathetic nervous system activity

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

University of Alabama at Birmingham

Other

Collaborators

  • Texas Tech University

Registry information

Official study title

Effects of Menu Design on Psychophysiological Measures of Cognitive Load and Food Ordering Outcomes

Important dates

Study start
2014
Primary completion
2015
Study completion
2015
First posted
Nov 9, 2017
Registry last updated
Nov 9, 2017

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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