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Updated: Jun 22, 2026

Assessment of Social Transmission of Food Preferences Behaviors
Published on: January 25, 2018
How negative experiences shape long-term food preferences. Fifty years from the World War II combat front
Brian Wansink1, Koert van Ittersum, Carolina Werle
1Cornell University, 110 Warren Hall, Ithaca, NY 14853-7801, United States. bcw28@Cornell.edu
Abstract:
How does a person's first experience with a foreign or unfamiliar food shape their long-term preference and behavior toward that food? To investigate this, 493 American veterans of World War II were surveyed about their preference for Japanese and Chinese food. Pacific veterans who experienced high levels of combat had a stronger dislike for these Asian foods than those Pacific veterans experiencing lower levels of combat. Consistent with expectations, combat experience for European veterans had no impact on their preference for Asian food. The situation in which one is initially exposed to an unfamiliar food may long continue to shape preferences.
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