Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 5, 2026
Methods for Presenting Real-world Objects Under Controlled Laboratory Conditions
Published on: June 21, 2019
Children's attention to supermarket food displays: A real-world eye-tracking study
Christine Driessen1, Asim Bhatti2, Adrian J Cameron1
1Deakin University, Geelong, Institute for Health Transformation, Global Centre for Preventive Health and Nutrition (GLOBE), Faculty of Health, Victoria, Australia.
Insights
Children
Area of Science:
- Pediatric nutrition and consumer behavior research.
- Public health interventions and food marketing analysis.
- Cognitive psychology and memory recall studies.
Background:
- Strategic food placement in supermarkets influences purchasing decisions.
- Children's visual attention is a key factor in food marketing effectiveness.
- Understanding children's exposure to unhealthy food marketing is crucial for public health.
Purpose of the Study:
- To measure children's visual attention to food and beverage placement strategies.
- To assess the impact of prominent product placement on children's memory.
- To analyze attention to healthy versus unhealthy food options in a real-world setting.
Main Methods:
- An exploratory observational eye-tracking study was conducted in an Australian supermarket.
- 15 children (aged 7-12) wore mobile eye-tracking glasses during routine grocery shopping.
- Gaze data (first fixation, dwell time) and subsequent recall surveys were collected.
Main Results:
- Children spent 17.2% of shopping time visually engaged with prominently placed foods.
- 99.2% of this attention was directed towards unhealthy products.
- High attention was observed at store entrances (37.5%) and checkouts (36.1%).
Conclusions:
- Prominent supermarket placement of unhealthy foods effectively captures children's attention and may influence memory.
- This study provides empirical evidence of children's real-world exposure to food marketing.
- Restricting prominent placement of unhealthy foods can reduce children's exposure to marketing.
Objective:
To quantify children's visual attention to placement strategies for healthy and unhealthy foods and beverages in a real-world Australian supermarket and examine their explicit memory.
Methods:
An exploratory observational eye-tracking study, conducted in a supermarket in Victoria, Australia, with 15 children aged 7-12 years and their caregivers. Children wore mobile eye-tracking glasses during a routine grocery shop to capture their gaze data, including first fixation and dwell time, followed by a recall survey.
Results:
Children spent on average 17.2% of their shopping time visually engaged with foods displayed in prominent locations, with 99.2% of this attention directed towards unhealthy products. Attention was highest for displays at store entrances (37.5%) and checkouts (36.1%), followed by end of aisles (16.8%) and standalone islands in other areas (8.9%). All children recalled foods they had visually attended to during the shop.
Conclusion:
Unhealthy foods displayed in prominent locations in the supermarket effectively capture children's attention and may influence memory.
Implications For Public Health:
To our knowledge, this is the first study to empirically demonstrate children's actual exposure (via first fixation) and engagement (via dwell time) with food and beverage products displayed in prominent locations in a real-world supermarket. Restricting the prominent placement of unhealthy foods could meaningfully reduce children's exposure to unhealthy food marketing.
