Table 2. Outcomes assessed in meta-analysis of experimental studies of sugary drink warnings.
| Construct | Definition | Example item | Example(s) of authors’ terminology |
|---|---|---|---|
| Behavior | |||
| Sugary drink purchase behavior (primary outcome) | Participants’ selection or purchase of sugary drinks in non-hypothetical shopping or choice scenarios | NA (objectively measured) | Sugar-sweetened beverage purchases, percent purchased sugary drink |
| Calories purchased from beverages | Total calories participants purchased from beverages in non-hypothetical shopping or choice scenarios | NA (objectively measured) | Calories purchased |
| Grams of sugar purchased from beverages | Total sugar participants purchased from beverages in non-hypothetical shopping or choice scenarios | NA (objectively measured) | Free sugar purchased |
| Attention and noticing | |||
| Noticed nutrition or trial label | Whether participants report noticing nutrition or trial label(s) | “In all of the previous purchasing tasks, did you notice any nutrition labels or symbols on the front of the food and beverage packages?” [26] | Noticing of FOP label, noticed trial label |
| Warning reactions | |||
| Negative emotional reactions | Negative emotional responses to warnings such as worry, fear, or disgust | “How worried does this image make you feel?” [27] | Negative emotions, negative mood, negative emotional arousal |
| Thinking about the health effects of sugary drinks | Extent to which participants report thinking about the health effects of sugary drinks | “How much did the labels make you think about the health problems caused by drinking beverages with added sugar?” [28] | Health consideration, cognitive elaboration, thinking about harms |
| Attitudes and beliefs about sugary drinks | |||
| Healthfulness perceptions | Perception that sugary drinks are (or consuming sugary drinks is) healthy | “How healthy do you think this product is?” [23] | Perceived healthfulness ratings, product healthfulness |
| Positive outcome expectancies | Beliefs that consuming sugary drinks will result in positive outcomes | “Drinking this product often would make you feel energized.” [22] | Focus, energized |
| Positive product attitudes | Positive evaluation of sugary drinks | “Say how unappealing or appealing you think each beverage is.” [28] | Product attractiveness, product appeal, coolness, deliciousness |
| Perceived disease likelihood | Beliefs that consuming sugary drinks is likely to lead to disease or health-related harms | “Drinking this product often would increase your risk of diabetes.” [22] | Risk perceptions, sugar-sweetened beverage disease risk, perceived health risks |
| Perceptions of amount of added sugar | Perceptions of the amount of added sugar in sugary drinks | “How much added sugar do you think is in this 20-ounce bottle?” [23] | Added sugar |
| Policy support | |||
| Policy support | Extent to which participants would support policies requiring sugary drink warnings | “Do you support putting this label on sugar-sweetened beverages?” [29] | Consumer support, acceptability |
| Intentions and hypothetical choices | |||
| Hypothetical purchases of sugary drinks | Participants’ selection or purchase of sugary drinks in hypothetical shopping or choice scenarios | NA (amount or selection in choice or shopping task) | Vending machine choice, selection of sugar-sweetened beverage in choice scenario |
| Purchase or consumption intentions | Likelihood of purchasing or consuming sugary drinks | “How likely are you to drink this product in the next 4 weeks?” [22] | Purchase likelihood |
| Hypothetical coupon selection—sugary drinks | Participants’ uptake of coupons for sugary drinks in hypothetical shopping or choice scenarios | “Indicate all beverages you would buy for your child for which you would like to receive a coupon.” [23] | Number of sugar-sweetened beverage coupons |
| Hypothetical coupon selection—non-sugary drinks | Participants’ uptake of coupons for non-sugary drinks in hypothetical shopping or choice scenarios | “Indicate all beverages you would buy for your child for which you would like to receive a coupon.” [23] | Number of non-sugar-sweetened beverage coupons |
| Hypothetical total expenditure on beverages | Participants’ total expenditures on beverages in hypothetical shopping or choice scenarios | NA (amount or selection in choice or shopping task) | Total expenditures on beverages |
FOP, front-of-package; NA, not applicable.