A MULTI-ATTRIBUTE MODEL OF PUBLIC ACCEPTANCE OF GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISMS

Using Fishbein's multiattribute model as a theoretical background, this paper develops an empirical model to assess and identify attributes of agrobiotechnology and individual characteristics determining public acceptance of biotech foods. This paper uses a database collected in the United States and United Kingdom in November, 2000.Consumer/Household Economics, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies,

An Improved Public Unclonable Function Design for Xilinx FPGAs for Hardware Security Applications

In the modern era we are moving towards completely connecting many useful electronic devices to each other through internet. There is a great need for secure electronic devices and systems. A lot of money is being invested in protecting the electronic devices and systems from hacking and other forms of malicious attacks. Physical Unclonable Function (PUF) is a low-cost hardware scheme that provides affordable security for electronic devices and systems. This thesis proposes an improved PUF design for Xilinx FPGAs and evaluates and compares its performance and reliability compared to existing PUF designs. Furthermore, the utility of the proposed PUF was demonstrated by using it for hardware Intellectual Property (IP) core licensing and authentication. Hardware Trojan can be used to provide evaluation copy of IP cores for a limited time. After that it disables the functionality of the IP core. A finite state machine (FSM) based hardware trojan was integrated with a binary divider IP core and evaluated for licensing and authentication applications. The proposed PUF was used in the design of hardware trojan. Obfuscation metric measures the effectiveness of hardware trojan. A moderately good obfuscation level was achieved for our hardware trojan

Role of Demographics and Health Attitude in Consumers' Nutrition Consideration in Food Selection

A nationwide on-line survey of 3,000 households was conducted. Households were randomly selected from the database of 400,000 households who make up Ipsos-NPD marketing research panel. The purpose of this study is to examine how a household meal planners perception of the importance of various dietary components in selecting food items is influenced by the persons or the households socio-demographic factors and health attitude. Annual household income affected fat, calcium, and cholesterol considerations significantly but did not make any impact on the consideration of salt when consumers selected food items. Hence, the result implies that as income level increases, household meal planners are more likely to be concerned about fat, calcium and cholesterol. Older household meal planners were more likely to consider salt, calcium and cholesterols than their younger counterparts. Health attitude of the household meal planners significantly influenced their nutritional concerns. Thos meal planners who read nutritional labels on food products and changed diet to reduce the risk of disease were concerned about all four types of nutritional factors included in the study.Nutrition consideration, health attitude, socio-demographical factors, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Health Economics and Policy,

AN EVALUATION OF CONSUMER ACCEPTANCE OF GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOOD: WILLINGNESS-TO-PAY (WTP) VS. WILLINGNESS-TO-ACCEPT (WTA).

Using Heckman's sample selection model, consumer willingness-to-pay (accept) premium (discount) for non-GM (GM) cereals was analyzed. Results showed that consumers who were indifferent to the risk of consuming GM foods behaved differently compared to those who were willing-to-pay (accept) premium (discount) for non-GM (GM) cereals.Consumer/Household Economics,

UK Consumers' Willingness-to-Accept (WTA) GM Food

Our study uses contingent valuation survey data (WTA and WTP) collected in the UK to examine consumers' behavioral intention with regard to GM food. In particular, we characterize respondents who selected "Don't Know" and "Protest" options in WTP questions in terms of what they would do when offered discount for GM food.Contingent valuation, WTA, WTP, genetically modified food, Consumer/Household Economics, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,

Estimating the Effect of FDA Allowed Health Claims on the Consumption of Soy-based Foods

The study evaluated the influence of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)'s regulatory action regarding the health benefits of soy-based foods on soy consumption. The results indicated that frequent users of soyfood products who were exposed to the FDA's decision would be more inclined to increase their consumption of soy-based foods as compared to those who were not exposed to such information. Yet the information about FDA's decision did not influence the behavioral intentions of infrequent-or non-consumers. In addition, effects of perceived attributes of soyfoods on the consumption pattern for soy-based food products were evaluated. Perceived attributes included convenience, health benefits, and taste. This study used conceptual model that highlights the role of perceived attributes in a demand model by combining Lancaster's characteristics model with Fishbein's multi-attribute model. Zero-inflated negative binomial model (ZINB) was used as an empirical specification to address the zero consumption of soyfood products. Results show convenience of preparation and consumption, and tastefulness had strong impacts on the consumption of soy-based food products.Health Economics and Policy,

Perceived Health Benefits and Soy Consumption Behavior: Two-Stage Decision Model Approach

A two-stage decision model is developed to assess the effect of perceived soy health benefits on consumers' decisions with respect to soy food. The first stage captures whether or not to consume soy food, while the second stage reflects how often to consume. A conceptual/analytical framework is also employed, combining Lancaster's characteristics model and Fishbein's multi-attribute model. Results show that perceived soy health benefits significantly influence both decision stages. Further, consumers' negative perceptions regarding soy (unappetizing taste and inconvenience) have a substantially greater impact on soy consumption behavior than their perceptions about soy health benefits. This finding carries significant implications for the soy industry. Additionally, this health benefit perception mediates the effect of general health-related factors such as knowledge, motivation, and awareness on soy consumption behavior. Our results also underscore the importance of current FDA-regulated health claims in stimulating consumer demand for soy foods.health benefits from soy food, Lancaster's characteristics model, multiattribute model, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,

Soyfood Consumption Patterns: Effects of Product Attributes and Household Characteristics

Effects of perceived attributes of soyfoods on the consumption patterns for six different soyfood products are evaluated. Perceived attributes include convenience, health benefits, and taste. The soyfood products are tofu, vegetable burgers, soy milk, soy supplements, meat substitutes, and soy cheese. This study uses a conceptual model that highlights the role of perceived attributes in a demand model by combining Lancaster’s characteristics model with Fishbein’s multi-attribute model. A binary-choice model and a zero-inflated negative binomial model (ZINB) are used as empirical specifications to address the zero consumption of soyfood products. Results show that perceived health attributes of soyfood have differential effects across the six soyfood products. Convenience of preparation and consumption as well as taste have strong effects across soyfood products. The study identifies several socio-economic characteristics of consumers that have a significant influence on soyfood consumption patterns. Implications for the food industry are discussed in relation to the differential effects of health attributes and socio-demographic variables.Demand and Price Analysis, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,

Health Concerns and Consumer Preferences for Soy Foods: Choice Modeling Approach

Consumer/Household Economics, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,