Journal of Marketing Science ›› 2022, Vol. 2 ›› Issue (4): 37-55.

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The Effect of Boundaries of Food Information on Perceived Healthiness and Purchase Intention

Li Ruiqin, Guo Guoqing, Cheung Sau Lan Fanny   

  1. Li Ruiqin, Business School, Renmin University of China Guo Guoqing, Business School, Renmin University of China Cheung Sau Lan Fanny,College of Business, City University of Hong Kong
  • Online:2022-10-16 Published:2023-03-22

Abstract: Existing literature have paid little attention to how boundaries affect people's food information processing process and shape people's food consumption preferences.  This paper investigates the effect of boundaries of food information on perceived healthiness, and examines the serial mediating role of the sense of confinement and psychological reactance, as well as the boundary conditions of this effect through 5 experiments.  The results show that: ( 1) boundaries of food infbnnation could reduce people's perceived healthiness (Experiment la, lb and lc) and purchase intentions (Experiment 2) ; (2) a sequential mediating effect demonstrates that food information boundaries could increase people's sense of confinement, which triggers people's psychological reactance and lower people's perceived healthiness (Experiment 4 and 5) ; (3) food safety risk perception moderates the effect of the boundaries of food information on perceived healthiness ( Experiment 3) .  Our research contributes to the literature of boundaries and food consumption, and provides important implications for the packaging design of the food enterprises.

Key words: boundaries of food information, perceived healthiness of food, sense of confinement, psychological reactance, food safety risk perception