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. 2021 May 18;10(5):1121.
doi: 10.3390/foods10051121.

Development of a Simplified Portion Size Selection Task

Aimee E Pink  1   2 , Bobby K Cheon  1   3
Affiliations

Development of a Simplified Portion Size Selection Task

Aimee E Pink et al. Foods. .

Abstract

Portion size is an important determinant of energy intake and the development of easy to use and valid tools for measuring portion size are required. Standard measures, such as ad libitum designs and currently available computerized portion selection tasks (PSTs), have several limitations including only being able to capture responses to a limited number of foods, requiring participants' physical presence and logistical/technical demands. The objective of the current study was to develop and test robust and valid measures of portion size that can be readily prepared by researchers and be reliably utilized for remote online data collection. We developed and tested two simplified PSTs that could be utilized online: (1) portion size images presented simultaneously along a horizontal continuum slider and (2) multiple-choice images presented vertically. One hundred and fifty participants (M = 21.35 years old) completed both simplified PSTs, a standard computerized PST and a series of questionnaires of variables associated with portion size (e.g., hunger, food item characteristics, Three Factor Eating Questionnaire). We found average liking of foods was a significant predictor of all three tasks and cognitive restraint also predicted the two simplified PSTs. We also found significant agreement between the standard PST and estimated portion sizes derived from the simplified PSTs when accounting for average liking. Overall, we show that simplified versions of the standard PST can be used online as an analogue of estimating ideal portion size.

Keywords: cognitive restraint; food characteristics; liking; online research; portion selection task; portion size.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not reflect the views of the A*STAR.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Sample images from the computerized portion selection task.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Example of the ‘slider’ version of the simplified portion size task (SPST).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Example of the ‘multiple-choice’ version of the simplified portion size task (MPST).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Bland–Altman plot for SCPST and SCPSTestimate_SPST.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Bland–Altman plot for SCPST and SCPSTestimate_MPST.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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