Nutr Res Pract.  2015 Oct;9(5):523-529. 10.4162/nrp.2015.9.5.523.

Perceptions and practices of commensality and solo-eating among Korean and Japanese university students: A cross-cultural analysis

• Cho W
• Takeda W
• Oh Y
• Aiba N
• Lee Y

• KMID: 2313874
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4162/nrp.2015.9.5.523

Abstract

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES
Commensality, eating together with others, is a major representation of human sociality. In recent time, environments around commensality have changed significantly due to rapid social changes, and the decline of commensality is perceived as a serious concern in many modern societies. This study employs a cross-cultural analysis of university students in two East Asian countries, and examines cross-cultural variations of perceptions and actual practices of commensality and solo-eating.
SUBJECTS/METHODS
The analysis was drawn from a free-list survey and a self-administrative questionnaires of university students in urban Korea and Japan. The free-listing survey was conducted with a small cohort to explore common images and meanings of commensality and solo-eating. The self-administrative questionnaire was developed based on the result of the free-list survey, and conducted with a larger cohort to examine reasons and problems of practices and associated behaviors and food intake.
RESULTS
We found that Korean subjects tended to show stronger associations between solo-eating and negative emotions while the Japanese subjects expressed mixed emotions towards the practice of solo-eating. In the questionnaire, more Korean students reported they prefer commensality and tend to eat more quantities when they eat commensally. In contrast, more Japanese reported that they do not have preference on commensality and there is no notable difference in food quantities when they eat commensally and alone. Compared to the general Korean cohort finding, more proportion of overweight and obese groups of Korean subjects reported that they tend to eat more when they are alone than normal and underweight groups. This difference was not found in the overweight Japanese subjects.
CONCLUSION
Our study revealed cross-cultural variations of perceptions and practices of commensality and solo-eating in a non-western setting.

Keyword

Commensality; solo-eating; cross-cultural study; cultural consensus analysis; university students

MeSH Terms

Asian Continental Ancestry Group*
Cohort Studies
Eating
Humans
Japan
Korea
Overweight
Social Change
Thinness

Figure

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  Fig. 1 Most frequently listed words associated with eating with others

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  Fig. 2 Most frequently listed topics associated with eating with others

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  Fig. 3 Most frequently listed words associated with eating alone

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  Fig. 4 Most frequently listed topics associated with eating alone

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