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Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Nutrients

Background to the Intention to Photo-Post Food on Instagram: Potential Implications for Digital Food Marketing and Promotion of Healthy Eating

  • Manuel Escobar-Farfán1
  • Iván Veas-González2
  • Jorge Bernal-Peralta3
  • Elizabeth Emperatriz García-Salirrosas4
  • Francisca Lasalas-Guerrero2
  • Milenka Marín-Pastene2
4 affiliations
  1. 1Department of Administration, Faculty of Administration and Economics, Universidad de Santiago 3 de Chile (USACH), Santiago 9170020, Chile
  2. 2Departamento de Administración, Facultad de Economía y Administración, Universidad Católica 5 del Norte, Antofagasta 1270709, Chile
  3. 3Facultad de Administración y Economía, Universidad de Tarapacá, Arica 1000007, Chile
  4. 4Faculty of Management Science, Universidad Autónoma del Perú, Lima 15842, Peru
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Abstract

Background/Objectives: The rise in food content on social media changed how people find, assess, and select places to eat. While Instagram is known as one of the most important media for digital food advertising, little attention has been paid to the psychological and experiential factors that lead people to take and share pictures of food in restaurants. This paper examines the reasons for the intention to share food photos in restaurants on Instagram using the Stimulus–Organism–Response (SOR) and Uses and Gratifications Theory frameworks. Methods: Data for this study were collected using a cross-sectional quantitative design, and 243 Instagram users in Chile who had eaten in restaurants in the previous 6 months were surveyed. The model was analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling in SmartPLS 4, with aesthetic, functional, and symbolic design aspects as stimuli and self-expression, positive emotions, and satisfaction as organism states. Results: Of the eleven relationships examined, eight were supported. Gastronomic experience was the strongest factor influencing self-expression, clearly predicting both positive emotional arousal and satisfaction. Self-expression was the strongest direct predictor of the intention to post a picture, followed by satisfaction. Positive emotional arousal acted as a strong indirect predictor through satisfaction. The model explained 60.6% of the variance in the intention to post a picture. Conclusions: The research suggests that the intention to post food photos on Instagram is associated with the wish to express one’s self-identity and satisfaction with the food experience. Based on the findings, restaurant businesses can develop digital food marketing strategies centered on the dining experiences that customers want to share. Future research could examine whether these motives differ according to the nutritional characteristics of the food shared.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{escobarfarfan2026background,
  title = {{Background to the Intention to Photo-Post Food on Instagram: Potential Implications for Digital Food Marketing and Promotion of Healthy Eating}},
  author = {Manuel Escobar-Farfán and Iván Veas-González and Jorge Bernal-Peralta and Elizabeth Emperatriz García-Salirrosas and Francisca Lasalas-Guerrero and Milenka Marín-Pastene},
  journal = {Nutrients},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.3390/nu18213624},
  url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/18/21/3624},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Background to the Intention to Photo-Post Food on Instagram: Potential Implications for Digital Food Marketing and Promotion of Healthy Eating
AU  - Manuel Escobar-Farfán
AU  - Iván Veas-González
AU  - Jorge Bernal-Peralta
AU  - Elizabeth Emperatriz García-Salirrosas
AU  - Francisca Lasalas-Guerrero
AU  - Milenka Marín-Pastene
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/31
JO  - Nutrients
DO  - 10.3390/nu18213624
UR  - https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/18/21/3624
AB  - Background/Objectives: The rise in food content on social media changed how people find, assess, and select places to eat. While Instagram is known as one of the most important media for digital food advertising, little attention has been paid to the psychological and experiential factors that lead people to take and share pictures of food in restaurants. This paper examines the reasons for the intention to share food photos in restaurants on Instagram using the Stimulus–Organism–Response (SOR) and Uses and Gratifications Theory frameworks. Methods: Data for this study were collected using a cross-sectional quantitative design, and 243 Instagram users in Chile who had eaten in restaurants in the previous 6 months were surveyed. The model was analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling in SmartPLS 4, with aesthetic, functional, and symbolic design aspects as stimuli and self-expression, positive emotions, and satisfaction as organism states. Results: Of the eleven relationships examined, eight were supported. Gastronomic experience was the strongest factor influencing self-expression, clearly predicting both positive emotional arousal and satisfaction. Self-expression was the strongest direct predictor of the intention to post a picture, followed by satisfaction. Positive emotional arousal acted as a strong indirect predictor through satisfaction. The model explained 60.6% of the variance in the intention to post a picture. Conclusions: The research suggests that the intention to post food photos on Instagram is associated with the wish to express one’s self-identity and satisfaction with the food experience. Based on the findings, restaurant businesses can develop digital food marketing strategies centered on the dining experiences that customers want to share. Future research could examine whether these motives differ according to the nutritional characteristics of the food shared.
SN  - 2072-6643
ER  -