4 . Consumers in the US spend more money when doing the grocery shopping online, but spend less on sweets and desserts than when they shop in physical stores.
In recent years, online grocery shopping has grown massively. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the amount consumers spend through online shopping has more than doubled in the US.
Laura Zatz at Harvard University and her colleagues have looked at how people’s habits change when they’re spending in-store compared with shopping online. They hired 137 participants, who were regular consumers of two supermarkets in the US state of Maine. Each participant was the key shopper for their household, and they also had experience in shopping both online and in-store.
The researchers studied each participant for a total of 44 weeks and tracked what items they purchased. They collected data from a total of 5,573 transactions (交易), 1,062 of which were made online and 4,511 in-store. “They purchased more items when shopping online, both in terms of overall number of items but also a greater variety of unique items,’ says Zatz. On average, participants spent 44% more per transaction when shopping online than in-store.
The results show that people spent more money on sweets and desserts when shopping in-store, spending on average $ 2. 50 more per transaction. However, there was no difference in spending on sugary drinks.
It seems that in-store shopping attracts shoppers to unhealthier food choices. “When you’re shopping in-store, you’re facing all sorts of stimuli (刺激) that could make you more willing to buy unhealthy food groups when you might not have otherwise planned to,” says Zatz. Unhealthy food choices are often placed in supermarkets at the end of aisles(走道) and at checkouts, where you can easily see, touch or even smell the food.
“The findings could help consumers reflect on how to avoid unhealthy food purchasing choices, especially as complex marketing is coming online,” says Zatz. “Besides offering seemingly appealing discounts, online stores may follow physical stores in many ways. You can never be too careful when shopping online.”
1. According to the text, the participants of the study are ________.
| A．experienced regular shoppers |
| B．unlucky COVID-19 patients |
| C．working in large supermarkets |
| D．uninterested in online shopping |
2. Which of the following is the focus of the study?
| A．The time spent on shopping online and in-store. |
| B．The amount of the money spent on healthy food. |
| C．The consumers’ attitudes towards unhealthy food. |
| D．The types of food people buy online and in-store. |
3. Why do consumers tend to buy unhealthy food in physical stores?
| A．They have easier access to checkouts. |
| B．They are offered appealing discounts. |
| C．They are exposed to sensory stimuli. |
| D．They consume energy while shopping. |
4. What is Laura Zatz’s attitude towards shopping online?
| A．Ambiguous. | B．Favorable. |
| C．Uncaring. | D．Cautious. |
