Situationally Triggered Consumption: The Effect of Sports Viewing on Snacking Incidence

51 Pages Posted: 3 Aug 2022

See all articles by Yi-Lin Tsai

Yi-Lin Tsai

University of Delaware - Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics

Daniel Mochon

Tulane University - A.B. Freeman School of Business

Mark Ratchford

Tulane University - A.B. Freeman School of Business

Marina Girju

California Baptist University

Date Written: July 24, 2022

Abstract

There is little direct (field) evidence demonstrating that a television show can systematically trigger a food consumption event. This research shows that watching NFL (American football) games on television causes people to consume more snacks than they would otherwise, an effect moderated by product-situation associations. We show this effect using a unique nationally representative sample of US consumers who self-report snacking behavior at the moment of consumption. Exploiting NFL games' unique temporal and geographic distribution, we are able to identify the causal effect of watching NFL games on real-world snack consumption. These findings appear to be robust across demographic groups as well as to different mappings between NFL teams and designated market areas (DMAs). These results show how product-situation associations can trigger consumption events and suggest practical implications for marketers as well as public health practitioners.

Keywords: food marketing, snacking, product associations, television, health

JEL Classification: M31, I12

Suggested Citation

Tsai, Yi-Lin and Mochon, Daniel and Ratchford, Mark and Girju, Marina, Situationally Triggered Consumption: The Effect of Sports Viewing on Snacking Incidence (July 24, 2022). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4171310 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4171310

Yi-Lin Tsai (Contact Author)

University of Delaware - Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics ( email )

Newark, DE 19716
United States

HOME PAGE: http://yilint.com

Daniel Mochon

Tulane University - A.B. Freeman School of Business ( email )

7 McAlister Drive
New Orleans, LA 70118
United States

Mark Ratchford

Tulane University - A.B. Freeman School of Business ( email )

7 McAlister Drive
New Orleans, LA 70118
United States

Marina Girju

California Baptist University ( email )

Riverside, CA 92504
United States

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