Do drinking buddies matter for young children?: Preschoolers’ conformity to remote peers’ beverage choices

Abstract

Young children tend to follow others’ food preferences. Whether this conformity applies to actual food/beverage consumption, however, is understudied. The present study tested whether sixty-three 3- to 6-year-old preschoolers conformed to remote peers’ beverage taste preferences. Participants indicated taste preference between two beverage options (standard v. sweetened), independently and after having been told that remote peers selected the opposite beverage. After the social influence manipulation, beverage preference and quantity consumed were measured. Results revealed a trend of conformity both in beverage preferences and subsequent private consumption patterns. These findings suggest that peers may be influential social reference figures for young children not just for beverage choice but also for associated consumption behavior. Age and thirst status was also found to be correlated with conformity, such that peers may play a more important role as preschoolers get older and that thirst may weaken social influence by peers.