Temporal landmarks help to change eating habits
The case of home delivered meals in Poland
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21622476 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Grzegorz Sojka (0009-0007-0909-097X, WSB Merito University in Poznan, corresponding author), Robert Mackiewicz (0000-0002-2990-2337, Uniwersytet SWPS), Andrzej Falkowski (0000-0001-5919-1110, Uniwersytet SWPS) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 44 |
| Issue | 20 |
| Pages | 16247-16261 |
| Publication date | 2025-10-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Current Psychology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1046-1310 • E-ISSN: 1936-4733 |
| Publisher | Springer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1007/s12144-025-08301-0 |
| OpenAlex | W4413410281 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 33 |
Temporal landmarks - such as the beginning of a week or a month - may help individuals overcome present bias and promote delayed gratification in health-related decision-making. Drawing on the concept of negative discounting, wherein delayed consumption gains value through anticipation and imagination, this study investigates whether temporal landmarks function as psychological anchors that facilitate the initiation of real-life dietary change. We analyzed nearly one million orders from 27 diet catering companies in Poland (2022–2023), supplemented by detailed monthly data from August 2024. The results reveal that consumers systematically align the initiation of dietary changes with temporal landmarks. As confirmed by the yearly data analysis, they tend to place orders just before or just after the start of a new month or week. Additionally, there was a strong preference for Monday as the first delivery day, regardless of the length of the catering plan. These findings provide large-scale behavioral evidence supporting the role of negative discounting in health-related consumer behavior. They also demonstrate how temporal landmarks can be strategically leveraged to encourage long-term dietary change. The study offers practical insights for designing interventions that align with natural temporal rhythms to promote healthier eating habits
Developmental psychology · Eating behavior · Obesity · Consumer Attitudes and Food Labeling · Culinary Culture and Tourism · Medicine · Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet · Psychology · Social Psychology
Anomalies in Intertemporal Choice
The goal-gradient hypothesis and maze learning.
Delay of Gratification in Children
Exercise, physical activity, and self-determination theory
A hot/cool-system analysis of delay of gratification
Intrinsic Motivation and Self-Determination in Human Behavior
Healthy or tasty
Disrupting future discounting
Predicting a changing taste
The Role of Imagery in Information Processing
Tourism dependency and residents' happiness
Anticipation and the Valuation of Delayed Consumption
Does it matter if a week starts on Monday or Sunday? How calendar format can boost goal motivation
Implementation intentions
The post-birthday world
Attention in delay of gratification
The role of temporal landmarks in autobiographical memory processes
| Highly cited | No |
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