| Abstract: |
Sociocultural factors are a very important aspect of food selection. Cultural differences in food perfernences and choices are enormous. What one eats during a meal is defined by the culture which precludes the question, What is your culture or ethnic group? There is no other single question that would even approach the informativeness of the answer to this question. pg. 235-236 There are two major sources of social influence: \iindirect\i
that is, indirect social influences set the stage for or modulate the interpretation of food encounters. The presence of a conspecific is not necessary for this route of influence. Indirect social factors include beliefs, culinary traditions, and occasions that are established as part of the acquisition of culture. other social influences are \idirect\i, that is, they require the mediation of another organism who is present on the occasion. In \iinadvertant social agency\i, the direct socil presence is necessary, but it is not specifically oriented to producing an effect. In \iactive social agency\i, the social agent participates in the learning task as an active teacher. \bIndirect\b cuisines are defined by the basic ingredients they employ, flavors employed, and particular food preparation. Cultures and individuals vary in the importance they attribute to food in their lives. Food also experiences a biological aspect. The \ibehavioral path\i orginates with biologically detemined aspects of human food-selection behaviors. The \imetabolic path\i orginates in biologically detemrined features of metabolism and nutritional needs. \uMetabolic\u Cuisine represent adaptive choices: substantial nutritional advantages to particular types of food processing, selection, or combinations, people will discover them. Examples: Milk drinking and lactose intolerance, manioc detoxification, corn and the tortilla, soy sauce Nutritional effects: Q: Is their origin directly guided by the nutritional advantages or indirectly guided as in the case of tortilla? Q: Are most culinary practices explained in terms of nutritional value, b/c food serves also as a major source of pleaseure, a major social vehicle, and a moral instrument in many cultures? e.g., cow in India pg. 242 Culture can affect biology and, in particular genes. For example, the genes that block the deprogramming of lactose at about the time of weaning were selected for, with the result that some populations become lactose-intolerant. This results in two pathways of acceptance: culture, involving changing the product before it enters the human body, and selection of genes that make the body able to handle raw milk. The meaning of food (the source of nutrition, source of pleasure, social-moral statement) is laid down by culture. The following are various aspect by with culture can/does play a role in our interactions with specfic foods. \uContext\u 1) \iFood Presentation\i Differing beliefs about alcohol consumption b/w Italians and Americans (Lolli et al 1958). 2) \iTiming of certain foods\i When do you certain foods which are readily availible any time of the day. Breakfast foods, food combinations (chocolate on French Fries) \uUniversal Themes\u Contagion - eating or drinking from someone you like vs. dislike. A cockroach, while perceived to be dirty, even when clean Americans will not drink out of a glass that had one in it (b/c it is still a cockroach). Among Americans, the principle of contagion is een primarily in the emotion of disgust in repsonse to animal products (e.g., insects, reptiles, and for many American viscera and raw meat), whereas in India and New Guinea, the meotion of disgust is evolked primarily by human interactions (Rozin et al 1993). \bDirect Social Influence\b 2 ways inwhich perference and liking are defined a) postingestive consequencs "this will make me feel better/sick" b) sensory properties of foods Say one likes a particular food is based on sensory properties and not postingestive consequences. Illustrated by taste aversion.
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