Dr. Patricia Pliner

RESEARCH

Patricia Pliner's research focuses on two aspects of human eating behavior. The first is food selection, which aims to understand the factors that determine what foods people choose to eat and what foods they like. In that context, she is particularly interested in food neophobia - the reluctance to eat novel or unfamiliar foods that is characteristic of omnivorous animals, including humans. Food neophobia can be studied both as a response that varies according to specific aspects of the situation and as a trait, and Professor Pliner's research has addressed both. The second aspect of human eating behavior in which Professor Pliner is interested has to do with the control of intake, which aims to understand the factors that determine when and how much people eat. Despite the widespread assumption that eating is controlled by physiological mechanisms reflecting nutritional deficit and surfeit, a host of factors unrelated to nutritional status have profound effects on how much humans eat on a particular occasion. Noteworthy among these is social influence and this is the focus of Professor Pliner's research on the control of intake.