Is being anti-vegan a distinct dietarian identity? An investigation with omnivores, vegans, and self-identified anti-vegans

Adding to research on the form and content of anti-vegan sentiment, recent scholarship has identified a group of individuals who self-subscribe as anti-vegan. Here, we sought to determine whether anti-veganism might reflect a distinct dietarian identity with its own unique ideological profile. Two-hundred and fourteen vegans, 732 omnivores, and 222 self-identified anti-vegans were assessed using a survey methodology that included the Dietarian Identity Questionnaire and ideological markers related to dark humour, social dominance orientation (SDO), speciesism, male-role norms, moral relativism, and attitudes toward science. Our analysis revealed a dietarian identity unique to anti-vegans. The dietary patterns of anti-vegans were more central to their identity than for omnivores, though marginally lower than vegans. Like vegans, anti-vegans scored highly on dietarian measures of private regard and personal dietary motivations, and lower than omnivores on public regard. The diets of anti-vegans were more morally motivated than omnivores. However, anti-vegans scored higher than both omnivores and vegans on a number of ideological measures including dark humour, SDO, speciesism, male-role norms, moral relativism, and distrust of science. Somewhat surprising, anti-vegans held greater trust than om-nivores in the science of plant-based nutrition. We discuss the unique dietarian identities of anti-vegans, considering both intra-group differences of omnivores and anti-vegans (e.g., in right-wing ideology), and inter-group similarities of vegans and anti-vegans (e.g., in diet centrality).

Automated summary

Recent scholarship has identified a group of individuals who self-identify as anti-vegan, and they have distinct dietarian identities and ideological profiles. Anti-vegans show higher levels of commitment to their dietary patterns compared to omnivores, and they also score higher on various ideological measures.