Boredom is an emotional state characterized by restlessness, a lack of interest in the environment, and a sense of purposelessness. It has been described by psychologist John Eastwood as the “unfulfilled desire for satisfying activity.” It is a universal but unpleasant human experience — and everyone tries to avoid it.
“Boredom signals what you’re doing right now seems to be lacking purpose,” another psychologist, Van Tilburg, observed in 2013. “As soon as you offer people alternative behaviors that may give them a sense of purpose, they’re more eager to engage, and this can result in negative or positive behavior.”
According to new research published in Frontiers in Psychology, people turn to food to escape from boredom and the sense of purposelessness in the present situation. The study, led by Andrew B. Moynihan, found that “boredom increases eating, specifically unhealthy and exciting foods which can serve as means to escape the bored self.”
After having 33 participants record their food intake and emotional state for a week, the researchers found that people consumed more calories when they were bored. Consumption of fats, carbohydrates, and proteins all increased on days in which the participants reported higher levels of boredom, but consumption of fiber did not increase.
The researchers also found that participants who were assigned to complete a boring puzzle task were more likely to desire a snack afterward compared to participants who completed a more interesting puzzle. However, boredom did not increase the participants’ desire to eat healthy foods.
In another experiment, the researchers found these self-reported desires were reflected in the actual behaviors of participants. Moynihan and his colleagues showed 44 participants either a boring instructional video about fish farming or a sad video about the abuse of dolphins. While the participants watched the videos, they were provided with three bowls containing cherry tomatoes, sweets, and crackers.
Participants who viewed the boring video ate more sweets and cherry tomatoes — but not more crackers — than those viewing the sad video. The finding suggests that “boredom specifically encourages consumption of sensational foods, healthy or unhealthy,” the researchers said.
Throughout the study, Moynihan and his colleagues found a link between boredom, self-awareness, and eating. People who paid more attention to their inner feelings tended to eat more food compared to less introspective people.
“By eating, bored people may regulate their self-awareness to avoid threatening existential issues. Attention is narrowed to the current and immediate stimulus environment. This consumption reduces self-awareness in which the meaning-threat posed by boredom resides,” the reseachers wrote.
