The link between people's social perceptions of cultivated meat eaters and their acceptance of cultivated meat

Low consumer acceptance emerges as one important barrier to the introduction of cultivated meat, a novel food which offers an opportunity for more sustainable and ethical meat production. Due to the motives for impression management and self-esteem, one factor that could contribute to people's acceptance of cultivated meat is their perceptions of other individuals who consume cultivated meat. In the current research, two online survey studies with 393 Singaporean undergraduate students and 401 American adults were conducted to explore the perceptions of cultivated meat eaters. In both studies, participants were randomly assigned to read one of three profiles that described a cultivated meat eater, a conventional meat eater, and a vegetarian. Then they rated the target on a list of traits. In Study 1, cultivated meat eaters were evaluated as more eco-friendly than conventional meat eaters, and less pure than vegetarians. In Study 2, cultivated meat eaters were perceived as more eco-friendly than conventional meat eaters, and less healthy than vegetarians; further, the participants tended to believe that others' general perception of cultivated meat eaters is slightly negative, and their belief about others' perception was strongly correlated with their acceptance of cultivated meat. Practical implications and future directions were discussed.