Assessing food neophobia: The role of stimulus familiarity

The present study assesses the effects of food familiarity on food ratings of neophobics and neophilics by having them sample and evaluate familiar an d novel foods. Level of neophobia was assessed using the Food Neophobia Sca le (FNS). Participants rated their familiarity with each food, their willin gness to try the foods and expected liking for the foods, as well as their actual liking for the foods after they were sampled. Willingness to try the foods again in the future, and the amount of food sampled were also assess ed. Evaluations of the foods were more positive for familiar vs. unfamiliar foods across all study participants. The responses of neophobics and neoph ilics were similar for familiar foods, but differed when the foods were unf amiliar, with neophobics making more negative evaluations. Neophobics and n eophilics differed least in their liking ratings of the stimuli that were m ade after the foods were actually sampled, and differed most in their ratin gs of willingness to try the foods. It is concluded that neophobics have di fferent expectancies about unfamiliar foods, and that these expectancies in fluence food sampling and rating behaviors. The neophobic's negative attitu de toward an unfamiliar food may be ameliorated, but is not eliminated, onc e sensory information about the food is obtained. (C) 1999 Academic Press.