Cognitive strategies for reporting portion sizes using dietary recall procedures.

Area of Science:

• Nutrition Science
• Cognitive Psychology
• Dietary Assessment

Background:

• Accurate dietary recall is crucial for nutritional research and public health.
• Understanding portion size estimation strategies is key to improving data quality.
• Existing portion size aids vary in effectiveness and user preference.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the cognitive strategies employed by individuals when estimating portion sizes during dietary recall interviews.
• To evaluate the utility and user preferences for different types of portion size estimation aids.

Main Methods:

• Seventy-six adults participated in interviews, utilizing various portion size aids (2D paper, 2D rings, household items, combined 2D/3D).
• Participants engaged in a "quick list" of consumed foods followed by cognitive think-aloud reporting for specific food items.
• Cognitive strategies for portion size estimation were identified and quantified.

Main Results:

• Visualization and comparison with aids were the most common recall strategies.
• Other strategies included using known amounts, visualizing volume/containers, and physical actions.
• Preferred aids varied by food type: shape/size similarity for liquids/amorphous foods, rulers for solids.

Conclusions:

• Dietary recall data quality can be enhanced by providing respondents with suitable portion size aids.
• Guiding respondents to the most appropriate aids facilitates more accurate portion size estimations.
• Future dietary assessment tools should incorporate user-centered design principles for portion size aids.