When the package says "add half a teaspoon of butter" or whatever, it's just straight up lying to you. There is literally ZERO perceivable difference between instant rice made with only water, and instant rice made with water plus a little butter. I've tested this myself. If you think the half-teaspoon of butter does some kind of fancy chemistry thing that's necessary for the instant rice to do its thing... No. The butter literally doesn't do anything. Absolutely nothing. Zilch. The package literally just tells you to add butter because market analytics show that if the package tells you the truth — that you really only need to add water — people will be biased to think it's a "worse product". So the butter is literally a placebo! Just a placebo, nothing more! And the same also goes for an enormous amount of instant foods that tell you to just add water plus, very conveniently, exactly one Extra Ingredient™!

How fucking many cows had their boobs fondled all because instant food companies noticed a slight increase in sales if they lied on their packaging? Hell, even for those who used margarine, how much margarine did you end up wasting on a literal placebo? How many teaspoons did you have to wash for no reason?

What the fuck

  • BashfulBob [none/use name]
    ·
    4 hours ago

    it's kind of similar to the IKEA model of providing a kit for people to assemble furniture and, afterward, feeling increased satisfaction for having accomplished something and internalizing the sense that they built the furniture

    I don't think that's why IKEA furniture needs to be assembled. If you've ever tried to move a piece of pre-assembled IKEA furniture, you'll know why it comes in pieces. There's a reason people value hardwood. It doesn't disintegrate as soon as you put pressure on it in the wrong direction.

    if you told people to "just add water" it would break the illusion.

    The illusion that butter tastes good?

    • came_apart_at_Kmart [he/him, comrade/them]
      ·
      4 hours ago

      of course it's not "why". same reason they don't package water with your instant rice: it's a cost savings strategy first. what we are discussing is how this strategy is turned into a value-add through marketing.

      literally a discussed phenomenon: https://www.leidenpsychologyblog.nl/articles/the-ikea-effect-the-feel-good-factor-of-self-assembly

      • BashfulBob [none/use name]
        ·
        1 hour ago

        Does the paper discuss the Feel Bad Effect of having to throw away your desk every time you move apartments, because it is impossible to disassemble and transport?