Associations between meal complexity and social context in four Nordic countries
Contemporary eating is often portrayed by images of snacking, solitary grazing, disintegration of sociability, demise of family meals, and increasingly irregular eating patterns –what Claude Fischler has famously described as gastroanomy. Inspired by the concept of eating system, this article contri...
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Anthropology of food
2014
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| Online Zugang: | Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM |
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openedition-oai:revues.org:aof_7666 |
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openedition |
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OpenEdition Journal |
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Article ou chapitre numérique |
| building |
0/Bibliothèque numérique/ 1/Bibliothèque numérique/OpenEdition Journals/ |
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sociabilité recherche comparative mode d’alimentation complexité des repas pays nordiques sociability comparative research eating system meal complexity Nordic countries |
| spellingShingle |
sociabilité recherche comparative mode d’alimentation complexité des repas pays nordiques sociability comparative research eating system meal complexity Nordic countries Kahma, Nina Mäkelä, Johanna Niva, Mari Lund, Thomas Bøker Associations between meal complexity and social context in four Nordic countries |
| description |
Contemporary eating is often portrayed by images of snacking, solitary grazing, disintegration of sociability, demise of family meals, and increasingly irregular eating patterns –what Claude Fischler has famously described as gastroanomy. Inspired by the concept of eating system, this article contributes to the discussion about the ongoing changes by examining the relation between meal complexity, sociability and the duration of meals in contemporary Nordic societies. We examine the differences in meal complexity between four Nordic countries, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden, focusing on two main meals, lunch and dinner. The analysis builds on the concept of eating system, examining the effect sociability has on meal complexity. In the end we ask whether complexity can better be explained by social context, or if it, rather, results from social differentiation. The data (N=8248) are drawn from the Food in Nordic Everyday Life survey conducted in Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden in 2012. The Finns and Swedes typically had two hot meals a day, whereas the Danes and Norwegians only had one. Moreover, the differences in the complexity were the greatest in hot dinners, the Danes and the Swedes having the most elaborate dinners. A marked proportion of meals were eaten within structured conditions either at workplace or home. The presence of any commensal partners increased the complexity of hot dinners, as did the longer duration of the meal. Situational factors were important in explaining differences in meal complexity, but social background, apart from age, did not convey many significant differences. |
| author |
Kahma, Nina Mäkelä, Johanna Niva, Mari Lund, Thomas Bøker |
| author_facet |
Kahma, Nina Mäkelä, Johanna Niva, Mari Lund, Thomas Bøker |
| author_sort |
Kahma, Nina |
| title |
Associations between meal complexity and social context in four Nordic countries |
| title_short |
Associations between meal complexity and social context in four Nordic countries |
| title_full |
Associations between meal complexity and social context in four Nordic countries |
| title_fullStr |
Associations between meal complexity and social context in four Nordic countries |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Associations between meal complexity and social context in four Nordic countries |
| title_sort |
associations between meal complexity and social context in four nordic countries |
| publisher |
Anthropology of food |
| publishDate |
2014 |
| container_title |
URI:https://journals.openedition.org/aof |
| url |
https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://doi.org/10.4000/aof.7666 https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://journals.openedition.org/aof/7666 |
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1877243041206501376 |
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openedition-oai:revues.org:aof_7666 https://doi.org/10.4000/aof.7666 urn:doi:10.4000/aof.7666 https://journals.openedition.org/aof/7666 2014-12-27T01:00:00Z info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess article info:eu-repo/semantics/article urn:handle:20.500.13089/9uzx https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ Associations between meal complexity and social context in four Nordic countries Anthropology of food Anthropology of Food Webjournal info:eu-repo/semantics/reference/issn/1609-9168 URI:https://journals.openedition.org/aof Kahma, Nina Mäkelä, Johanna Niva, Mari Lund, Thomas Bøker sociabilité recherche comparative mode d’alimentation complexité des repas pays nordiques sociability comparative research eating system meal complexity Nordic countries Contemporary eating is often portrayed by images of snacking, solitary grazing, disintegration of sociability, demise of family meals, and increasingly irregular eating patterns –what Claude Fischler has famously described as gastroanomy. Inspired by the concept of eating system, this article contributes to the discussion about the ongoing changes by examining the relation between meal complexity, sociability and the duration of meals in contemporary Nordic societies. We examine the differences in meal complexity between four Nordic countries, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden, focusing on two main meals, lunch and dinner. The analysis builds on the concept of eating system, examining the effect sociability has on meal complexity. In the end we ask whether complexity can better be explained by social context, or if it, rather, results from social differentiation. The data (N=8248) are drawn from the Food in Nordic Everyday Life survey conducted in Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden in 2012. The Finns and Swedes typically had two hot meals a day, whereas the Danes and Norwegians only had one. Moreover, the differences in the complexity were the greatest in hot dinners, the Danes and the Swedes having the most elaborate dinners. A marked proportion of meals were eaten within structured conditions either at workplace or home. The presence of any commensal partners increased the complexity of hot dinners, as did the longer duration of the meal. Situational factors were important in explaining differences in meal complexity, but social background, apart from age, did not convey many significant differences. L’alimentation contemporaine est souvent illustrée par des représentations de grignotage solitaire, de désintégration de la sociabilité, de disparition des repas pris en famille et d’habitudes alimentaires de plus en plus irrégulières – ce que Claude Fischler a mémorablement qualifié de « gastro-anomie ». Inspiré par le concept de mode d’alimentation, cet article contribue, à travers l’examen de la relation entre complexité des repas, sociabilité et durée des repas dans les sociétés nordiques contemporaines, à la discussion sur les changements actuels en cours. Nous examinons les différences de complexité entre quatre pays nordiques, le Danemark, la Finlande, la Norvège et la Suède, en nous focalisant sur deux repas principaux, le déjeuner et le dîner. L’analyse se construit autour du concept de mode d’alimentation et examine l’effet qu’a la sociabilité sur la complexité des repas. Nous nous posons finalement la question de savoir si la complexité dépend principalement du contexte social ou si elle résulte plutôt d’une différenciation sociale. Les données (N=8248) sont tirées d’une étude intitulée Food in Nordic Everyday Life (‘La nourriture dans la vie quotidienne nordique’), conduite au Danemark, en Finlande, en Norvège et en Suède en 2012. Elles révèlent que les Finlandais et les Suédois prennent typiquement deux repas chauds par jour, contrairement aux Danois et aux Norvégiens qui n’en prennent qu’un. C’est par ailleurs en matière de repas chauds que les différences sont les plus grandes, les Danois et les Suédois préparant les dîners les plus élaborés. Une proportion significative de repas sont consommés dans un cadre structuré, sur le lieu de travail ou à la maison. La présence de compagnons de table augmente la complexité des dîners chauds, tout comme la plus longue durée du repas. Si les facteurs situationnels permettent d’expliquer en bonne partie les différences de complexité des repas, les origines sociales, en revanche, ne sont pas source de grandes différences, hormis l’âge. |