Interacting with an AI-generated Future Self to Promote Healthy Food Choices - A Study Proposal

Self-control, the ability to resist immediate temptations, is among the core capabilities to successfully navigate modern obesogenic environments. Addressing impulsivity and self-control using behavioral interventions can contribute to alleviating the global obesity epidemic. Episodic Future Thinking (EFT) interventions, that prompt users to simulate self-related future events, have shown promise in reducing impulsive choice tendencies and inducing dietary behavior changes in laboratory contexts. However, more research is needed to develop tools that make EFT applicable in real-world settings. In this study proposal, we describe a novel EFT intervention based on an AI-powered conversational agent that allows users to interact with a hypothetical future version of themselves. We outline a pre-registered research plan to test its effectiveness for reducing choice-related impulsivity and ameliorating food choice. The results are expected to provide initial evidence for an actionable tool that promises to aid individuals with self-controlled decision making in the dietary domain and beyond.