Framing and Tailoring Prefactual Messages to Reduce Red Meat Consumption: Predicting Effects Through a Psychology-Based Graphical Causal Model

Abstract

Effective recommendations on healthy food choice need to be personalized and sent out on a large scale. In this paper, we present a model of automatic message selection tailored on the characteristics of the recipient and focused on the reduction of red meat consumption. This model is obtained through the collaboration between social psychologists and artificial intelligence experts. Starting from selected psychosocial models on food choices and the framing effects of recommendation messages, we involved a sample of Italian participants in an experiment in which they: (a) filled out a first questionnaire, which was aimed at detecting the psychosocial antecedents of the intention to eat red/processed meat; (b) read messages differing as to the framing of the hypothetical consequences of reducing (gain, non-loss) versus not reducing (non-gain, loss) red/processed meat consumption; (c) filled out a second questionnaire, which was aimed at detecting participants’ reaction to the messages, as well as any changes in their intention to consume red/processed meat. Data collected were then employed to learn both the structure and the parameters of a Graphical Causal Model (GCM) based on a Dynamic Bayesian Network (DBN), aimed to predicting the potential effects of message delivery from the observation of the psychosocial antecedents. Such probabilistic predictor is intended as the basis for developing automated interactions strategies using Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) techniques. Discussion focuses on how to develop automatic interaction strategies able to foster mindful eating, thanks to (a) considering the psychosocial characteristics of the people involved; (b) sending messages tailored on these characteristics; (c) adapting interaction strategies according to people’s reactions.