Abstract
BackgroundRegular consumption of take-out and fast foods with sugary drinks is associated with poor quality diets and higher prevalence of obesity. Among the settings where such food is consumed is the food court typically found in shopping malls prominent in many countries.ObjectiveThe objective of this research was to develop a virtual reality food court that could be used to test food environmental interventions, such as taxation, and ultimately to facilitate the selection of healthier food choices.MethodsFourteen food courts in Sydney, Australia were selected to include those in the city center and suburbs of high and low socioeconomic status. Researchers visited the courts to collect information on number and type of food outlets, all menu items for sale, cost of foods and beverages and sales promotions. This information was used to assemble 14 food outlets typically found in food courts, and representative menus were compiled. The UNITY gaming platform was used to design a virtual reality food court that could be used with HTC VIVE goggles. Participants navigated the virtual reality food court using the head-mounted display, keyboard, and mouse and selected a lunch meal, including food and beverage. A validated questionnaire on presence within the virtual reality food court and system usability was completed at the end of the session. The constructs for presence included a sense of control, sensory fidelity, realism, distraction, and involvement. Questions were rated on a scale from 1 (worst) through 7 (best) for each of 28 questions giving a maximum total score of 196. The systems usability scale (SUS) that gives a final score out of 100 was also assessed.ResultsOne hundred and sixty-two participants with a mean age of 22.5 (SD 3.1) years completed the survey. The mean score for total presence was 144 (SE 1.4) consisting of control: 62.1 (SE 0.8), realism: 17.5 (SE 0.2), involvement: 9.6 (SE 0.2), sensory fidelity: 34.9 (SE 0.4), and distraction: 24.0 (SE 0.3). The mean SUS was 69 (SE 1.1).ConclusionsVirtual reality shows promise as a tool to study food choice for test interventions to inform practice and policy.
Highlights
The world is currently experiencing an obesity epidemic [1]
An association between transactions for fast food meals per capita and population body mass index has been demonstrated in the member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) [2]
One venue where young people congregate in many OECD countries is the shopping mall and its food court
Summary
The world is currently experiencing an obesity epidemic [1]. An association between transactions for fast food meals per capita and population body mass index has been demonstrated in the member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) [2]. One venue where young people congregate in many OECD countries is the shopping mall and its food court Conducting experiments in this setting is met with many barriers and food outlet owners may require evidence that any measures imposed on them will achieve the intended aim of changing rates of overweight and obesity. A number of countries have enforced the display of calorie counts on fast-food menu boards [9] While these have led to greater awareness of energy contents and better choices by those who use them, only about 30% of people do so [10]. Among the settings where such food is consumed is the food court typically found in shopping malls prominent in many countries
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