Former Beatle’s views backed by research
PAUL McCartney may have had a point when he famously said “if slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be vegetarian”.
A new psychological study lends support to the vegetarian former Beatle’s claim that people only stomach meat by distancing themselves from the animals whose flesh they consume. In a series of experiments, researchers showed that feelings of empathy were reduced the more the origin of a meat product was disguised by processing or packaging.
Language also played a role in making us more comfortable with having slices of dead animal on our plates, the scientists found. Replacing the words “pork” and “beef” on a menu with “pig” and “cow” made people less happy about eating meat.
Lead researcher Dr Jonas Kunst, from the Institute of Psychology at the University of Oslo, Norway, who is not a vegetarian, said: “The presentation of meat by the industry influences our willingness to eat it. “Our appetite is affected both by what we call the dish we eat and how the meat is presented to us. “The science results support a line of philosophers and animal rights activists who have said that the way meat is presented and talked about in our culture makes us consume more of it.” In the first of five studies conducted in Norway and the US, volunteers were presented with chicken at different processing stages – a whole bird, drumsticks, and chopped chicken fillets.
At each stage participants empathised less with the animal, the study found. It was a similar story when people were shown two pictures of a pork roast, one intact and the other missing its head. They felt less empathy and were less willing to consider a vegetarian alternative when shown the headless image.
By: Bridget Morris
Source: The National
