Food neophobia: psychological dimensions of consumer perception and emotional sentiment in social media discourse
Addressing global food security necessitates exploring future foods, yet their societal acceptance hinges critically on public perception an2d psychological barriers such as neophobia. This study delves into the psychological dimensions underlying consumer perception of future foods, investigating t...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Frontiers Media S.A.
2025-06-01
|
| Series: | Frontiers in Nutrition |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnut.2025.1584409/full |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849430627243261952 |
|---|---|
| author | Yu Shan Hong Wang Wenqi Wang |
| author_facet | Yu Shan Hong Wang Wenqi Wang |
| author_sort | Yu Shan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Addressing global food security necessitates exploring future foods, yet their societal acceptance hinges critically on public perception an2d psychological barriers such as neophobia. This study delves into the psychological dimensions underlying consumer perception of future foods, investigating the intricate relationship between food neophobia and these perceptions, and mapping the prevailing emotional landscape surrounding novel food adoption. Employing a Social Media Analytics (SMA) framework to capture ecologically valid public discourse, we utilized social media text analysis, integrating topic modeling and sentiment analysis, to dissect online expressions concerning future foods. Our analysis reveals that public evaluations are predominantly positive (53.20%), while a substantial segment expresses negative sentiments (30.48%) and ambivalence (16.32%). Psychologically, we identified four salient perceptual dimensions – taste, appearance, culture, and technology – which differentially mediate food neophobia and elicit distinct emotional valences. Notably, appearance and cultural perceptions are associated with heightened neophobia and negative emotional responses, suggesting underlying psychological mechanisms of sensory and socio-cultural rejection. These findings offer critical psychological insights for future food producers and policymakers, highlighting the psychological determinants of public attitudes toward future foods and informing psychologically-informed strategies to enhance consumer acceptance and promote dietary innovation. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-411b46ee616349c7bd95600a8d5db4f2 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2296-861X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Nutrition |
| spelling | doaj-art-411b46ee616349c7bd95600a8d5db4f22025-08-20T03:27:56ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Nutrition2296-861X2025-06-011210.3389/fnut.2025.15844091584409Food neophobia: psychological dimensions of consumer perception and emotional sentiment in social media discourseYu Shan0Hong Wang1Wenqi Wang2School of Management Science, Chengdu University of Technology, Sichuan, ChinaSchool of Business, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, Sichuan, ChinaSchool of Management Science, Chengdu University of Technology, Sichuan, ChinaAddressing global food security necessitates exploring future foods, yet their societal acceptance hinges critically on public perception an2d psychological barriers such as neophobia. This study delves into the psychological dimensions underlying consumer perception of future foods, investigating the intricate relationship between food neophobia and these perceptions, and mapping the prevailing emotional landscape surrounding novel food adoption. Employing a Social Media Analytics (SMA) framework to capture ecologically valid public discourse, we utilized social media text analysis, integrating topic modeling and sentiment analysis, to dissect online expressions concerning future foods. Our analysis reveals that public evaluations are predominantly positive (53.20%), while a substantial segment expresses negative sentiments (30.48%) and ambivalence (16.32%). Psychologically, we identified four salient perceptual dimensions – taste, appearance, culture, and technology – which differentially mediate food neophobia and elicit distinct emotional valences. Notably, appearance and cultural perceptions are associated with heightened neophobia and negative emotional responses, suggesting underlying psychological mechanisms of sensory and socio-cultural rejection. These findings offer critical psychological insights for future food producers and policymakers, highlighting the psychological determinants of public attitudes toward future foods and informing psychologically-informed strategies to enhance consumer acceptance and promote dietary innovation.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnut.2025.1584409/fullfuture foodsperception of future foodsneophobiasocial media analytics (SMA)Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) |
| spellingShingle | Yu Shan Hong Wang Wenqi Wang Food neophobia: psychological dimensions of consumer perception and emotional sentiment in social media discourse Frontiers in Nutrition future foods perception of future foods neophobia social media analytics (SMA) Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) |
| title | Food neophobia: psychological dimensions of consumer perception and emotional sentiment in social media discourse |
| title_full | Food neophobia: psychological dimensions of consumer perception and emotional sentiment in social media discourse |
| title_fullStr | Food neophobia: psychological dimensions of consumer perception and emotional sentiment in social media discourse |
| title_full_unstemmed | Food neophobia: psychological dimensions of consumer perception and emotional sentiment in social media discourse |
| title_short | Food neophobia: psychological dimensions of consumer perception and emotional sentiment in social media discourse |
| title_sort | food neophobia psychological dimensions of consumer perception and emotional sentiment in social media discourse |
| topic | future foods perception of future foods neophobia social media analytics (SMA) Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnut.2025.1584409/full |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT yushan foodneophobiapsychologicaldimensionsofconsumerperceptionandemotionalsentimentinsocialmediadiscourse AT hongwang foodneophobiapsychologicaldimensionsofconsumerperceptionandemotionalsentimentinsocialmediadiscourse AT wenqiwang foodneophobiapsychologicaldimensionsofconsumerperceptionandemotionalsentimentinsocialmediadiscourse |