The purpose of this study is to conduct a discrete choice experiment to investigate whether warning labels on Sugar-Sweetened Beverages (SSBs) alter the effectiveness of a tax on SSBs, especially among parents who are Black, Latinx and lower income. The research team will conduct an online choice experiment with 2,700 parents and caregivers of children who are 5 years old or younger. Participants will be assigned to one of three SSB warning label conditions (no label, text-only label, and icon label) and will be asked a series of 8 choice questions where they must choose between different beverages as their prices are varied through the addition of different tax rates. Specific aims include: (1) estimate the sensitivity to changes in SSB prices of parents’ purchases of SSBs for young children; (2) determine the effect of two different warning labels on parents’ purchases of SSBs and perceptions of these beverages; (3) assess whether warning labels make parents more or less sensitive to changes in SSB price; and (4) evaluate how these effects differ across income and racial/ethnic groups (especially for parents who are Black and Latinx).
Start Date: April 2021
ID #: 283-4132
Principal Investigator: Dallas Wood BA, ME, PhD
Organization: Research Triangle Institute
Funding Round: SSB4
Race/Ethnicity: African American or Black, Latino(a) or Hispanic
Focus Areas: Beverages, Early Childhood, Pricing & Economics
Keywords: Front-of-package labeling, Sugar-sweetened beverages, Taxes
Resource Type: Grant Summary
Age Groups: Pregnant women, infants and toddlers (ages 0 to 2), Preschool-age children (ages 3 to 5)
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