The psychology of eating from the point of view of experimental, social, and applied psychology

In this article, eating behavior is discussed from the point of view of various areas of psychology. First, tasting food and the perception of food palatability are discussed from the viewpoints of sensory and perceptual psychology and of physiological psychology. Second, the phenomenology of some social-psychological effects on eating behavior are introduced – for example, communication at the table, sociocultural variations in food liking/disliking, and emotional changes after eating. Third, these topics are integrated and are applied to food businesses. Two conclusions can be drawn: (1) understanding human eating behavior leads one to understand human beings themselves; (2) a psychological understanding of eating behavior not only gives one broad knowledge of psychology but also provides businesses and governments with hints for improving quality of life.