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The heart of the meal: food preferences and habits among rural Australian couples
Author(s) -
Lupton Deborah
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
sociology of health and illness
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.146
H-Index - 97
eISSN - 1467-9566
pISSN - 0141-9889
DOI - 10.1111/1467-9566.00193
Subject(s) - metropolitan area , sensibility , sociality , food choice , qualitative research , conservatism , psychology , food habits , sociology , social psychology , geography , environmental health , medicine , political science , social science , politics , ecology , archaeology , pathology , law , biology
This article draws upon empirical data from a qualitative study investigating issues around the food choices and preferences of a group of 34 heterosexual cohabiting couples, with and without children living at home, in a rural region of Australia. It explores their everyday food habits and preferences, their notions of a healthy diet and their use of and attitudes towards takeaway food and dining out. The study found that the participants, for the most part, demonstrated a conservatism in their food preferences, lacking the desire for exotica and the gourmand sensibility that characterises members of the metropolitan middle class. The aspects of food they found most pleasurable and valuable were nostalgia, tradition, balance, health, family togetherness and sociality.