1 of 60

The Daily Consumption and Need of Caffeine among Fu Jen University Students: Motivations, Efficacy, and Influences

Section E Carrie Chou

2 of 60

Outline

04

Methodology

05

Questionnaire/ Interview Results

Results and Discussion

01

Introduction

02

Research Gaps

Literature Review

03

Research Questions

06

Conclusion

3 of 60

How many of you consume caffeine in daily life?

4 of 60

→ Taiwanese people consume 122 cups of coffee each person per year

Background

Taiwan accounted for 0.45% of global coffee consumption (World Coffee Consumption).

5 of 60

What is Caffeine?

Caffeine is well-known as a highly sought-after substance for providing energy for students to match the expectations of their performance at school (qtd. in Beek 42).

Caffeine consumption among college students has gradually received attention

(Among college students)

6 of 60

Motivation

More and more students have bought coffee, tea, and other caffeine-containing products
Some classmates said that caffeine does not have any effectiveness to them

7 of 60

Purposes & Significance

To demonstrate the current situation that college students consume caffeine at FJU
Make college students reconsider whether their caffeine intake habits are necessary or it is only a habit
In order to strike a balance between its effectiveness and side effects, the best way is to consume caffeine appropriately and wisely

8 of 60

Literature

Review

02

9 of 60

The Motivations for Caffeine Consumption in College Students

The maintenance of staying awake and alert

The enhancement of moods or performances

The taste of caffeine-containing products

10 of 60

The Motivations for Caffeine Consumption in College Students

01

02

The main reasons for caffeine intake among university students were to increase mood and alertness, together with enjoying the taste (Riera-Sampol 13).

79% of college students use caffeine-containing products to enhance their moods or performances, including to stay more awake and 68% enjoy the taste of those products (Mahoney 674).

11 of 60

Side Effects

If people consume over 400 milligrams (mg) of caffeine, they may experience some side effects:

Headache
Insomnia
Jittery
Nervousness
frequent urination
fast heartbeat
muscle tremors

(Mayo Clinic)

12 of 60

Adverse Effects of Caffeine

13 of 60

Research Gaps

Research Gap 1
Did not analyze the real efficacy of caffeine-containing products
Still not known whether some people consume caffeine because of its efficacy or because of their habits

Research Gap 2
Few relevant research was conducted in Asian countries
Results may differ from areas to areas

14 of 60

Research

Questions

03

15 of 60

Research Questions

Research Question 1 (Motivations):
What are the motivations and intake habits of caffeine consumption in college students?

Research Question 2 (Caffeine Efficacy from the Perception of College Students):
Will the caffeine efficacy from the perception of college students is still effective for them after consuming for over one year?

Research Question 3 (Side Effects):
Among various kinds of side effects, how many college students have once experienced them? Which factor influences them the most?

16 of 60

04

Methodology

17 of 60

Research Type

18 of 60

Research Type

19 of 60

Questionnaire (20 questions)

Internal factors

and external factors

20 of 60

Caffeine Intake Habits

21 of 60

Motivations

Efficacy

22 of 60

Side Effects

(5-point Likert Scale)

23 of 60

Interview

10 interviewees
Respondents who have experience in caffeine consumption
5 follow-up questions based on the questionnaire results
In-depth responses

24 of 60

Results &

Discussion

05

25 of 60

Questionnaire

Results Analysis

26 of 60

100 Responses

27 of 60

The Top Three Products

Coffee

62%

Chocolate

38.7%

Tea

74.2%

28 of 60

Current Caffeine Consumption Habits

(Students at Fu-Jen University)

Students who consumed caffeine…

24%

37%

29 of 60

Current Caffeine Consumption Habits

(Students at Fu-Jen University)

Every day

Over 400 mg

1~2 days

25%

60%

37%

Students who consumed caffeine…

30 of 60

Current Caffeine Consumption Habits

(Students at Fu-Jen University)

Below 200 mg

55%

Fu Jen University students was at a standard value

31 of 60

Motivations

32 of 60

Motivations

The Internal Factors That Motivated Students to Consume Caffeine

Internal Factors
focused more on the intrinsic motivations that motivated people to consume caffeine

65.6%

35.5%

33.3%

39.8%

33 of 60

Motivations

Factor related to the maintenance of staying awake and alert was more prevalent than other internal factors

The majority of respondents chose to consume caffeine for the purpose of staying awake in order not to accidentally fall asleep during the daytime

34 of 60

Motivations

The External Factors That Motivated Students to Consume Caffeine

External Factors
addressed the environmental and product-related factors

58%

66.7%

35.5%

37.6%

35 of 60

Motivations

The intentions had a lot to do with their personal habits and products which were not purposeful

Be able to concentrate on academic work (35.5%)
School work did not play a determining role in undergraduates

36 of 60

Motivations

Approximately 20% of respondents did not have internal factors but all of them chose external factors

Personal habit and the taste of caffeine-containing products were more important as a motivation among college students

External factors > Internal factors

37 of 60

Efficacy

38 of 60

Efficacy

The Efficacy of Consuming Caffeine for More Than One Year

Consumed caffeine over one year (80%)

To analyze deeper, we found that the motivations of those students who did not consider caffeine consumption as a habit focused more on the taste of caffeine-containing products rather than having clear internal factors or purposes. Furthermore, all of them would not feel any different if they did not consume it. In contrast, in the group of people who had a habit of consuming caffeine, 83% of them had a clear purpose and internal factors for maintaining their alertness and staying awake. Approximately 40% of them consumed caffeine in order to focus more on their academic work. These results showed a clear juxtaposed relationship between internal and external motivations and caffeine consumption habits. Nevertheless, the most apparent difference was that all of the people who did not have a habit of caffeine consumption would not feel any different if they did not consume caffeine while more than 57% of the students who have the habits of caffeine consumption or have clear motivations and purposes to consume caffeine would lead to absent-mindedness if they did not use it.

39 of 60

Among this group…

64%

36%

The efficacy still works in the group of people who regard caffeine consumption as a habit

40 of 60

This group of people’s motivation factors transferred into the external factors which were personal habits after consuming for over one year

Caffeine effectiveness could turn out to be ineffective for some college students in the end but not the majority of them

36% of the respondents

continuously consume caffeine

41 of 60

Side Effects

42 of 60

Side Effects

Participants consumed caffeine below 200 mg
The side effects that happened to college students were insignificant

Frequent Urination
45% of the people usually experienced it

Fast Heartbeat
More than a quarter of the respondents usually experienced it

43 of 60

Frequent Urination That Students Experienced after Consuming Caffeine

35.5%

10.8%

had a high proportion among college students

19.4%

12.9%

21.5%

44 of 60

Side Effects

Although students consumed caffeine below 200 mg, these two adverse effects were apparent

There was still a risk of experiencing side effects

(not necessary happen only in those who consume over 400 mg per day)

45 of 60

Extra Findings

Will continuously consume caffeine after learning its side effects (83%)

Will NOT continuously consume caffeine after learning its side effects (17%)

46 of 60

Interview

Results Analysis

(10 interviewees)

47 of 60

The Efficacy of Consuming Caffeine for More Than One Year

A habit but did not feel the effectiveness anymore (3 people)
Original purpose
made them stay awake and concentrated on their school work
Caffeine consumption has gradually became a habit

Students’ motivations transferred into a daily life habit after having no effectiveness to them
= the results in the quantitative research

48 of 60

Whether students will continue to consume caffeine and reasons

“I think I will not consume over 400 mg per day so the effectiveness it brings to me is far greater than the negative effects so far.”

“I do not consume that much caffeine in my daily life but if it does harm my body to some extent, I will consider stopping consuming it.”

“For the current status, I will choose to consume it continuously in order to have a good performance on school work. However, if I don’t need to focus on my school work, I think I will not consume it.”

(6 people)

(3 people)

(1 person)

49 of 60

Extra Findings

Current status of student identities

+

The low amount of caffeine consumption in daily life

Participants tend to continuously consume caffeine after knowing the adverse effects

50 of 60

Conclusion

06

Recap/ Implication/ Limitations/ Future Research

51 of 60

Research Question 1 (Motivations):

What are the motivations and intake habits of caffeine consumption in undergraduate students?

The personal habit
The taste of products
The maintenance of staying awake

52 of 60

Research Question 2 (Caffeine Efficacy from College Students):
Will the efficacy of caffeine from the perception of college students is still effective for them after consuming for over one year?

36% did not feel the effectiveness but they still consumed caffeine as a habit
64% consumed caffeine as a habit and they could still feel the efficacy

The efficacy still works in the group of people who regard caffeine consumption as a habit but almost one third of the respondents can no longer feel the effects

53 of 60

Research Question 3 (Side Effects):
Among various kinds of side effects of caffeine, how many college students have once experienced them? Which factor influences the most?

Although over half of the participants consumed caffeine below 200 mg per day, frequent urination and fast heartbeat appear more often in the college students

The side effects do not just happen to people who consume over 400 mg

54 of 60

Implication

This research has implications for the consumers’ behaviors of caffeine consumption among college students

These results can show a basic framework for college students' caffeine consumption in a small group in Taiwan

55 of 60

Limitations

Small samples were collected

Cannot represent the whole situation of caffeine consumption among undergraduates in Taiwan

The efficacy of consuming caffeine was from the students’ perceptions

May cause students to make subjective answers

56 of 60

Future Research

To obtain more specific and accurate results

Can conduct a survey on a larger group of people

The lack of related surveys on caffeine consumption in Eastern countries

The data collection can be enlarged to cover more university students from different schools in Taiwan

57 of 60

Conclusion

To develop a balanced habit of caffeine consumption, the most effective way is to clarify the motivations, re-evaluate the effectiveness and side effects, and further reconsider self-caffeine consumption in daily life

58 of 60

Works Cited

Beek, Andrea et al. “College Students’ Caffeine Intake Habits and Their Perception of Its Effects.”

Journal of Education and Development, vol. 3, 2019, pp. 42, doi:10.20849/jed.v3i2.607.

International Coffee Organization. “World Coffee Consumption.” August 2021,

www.ico.org/prices/new-consumption-table.pdf.

Mahoney, Caroline R. et al. “Intake of Caffeine from All Sources and Reasons for Use by College

Students.” Clinical Nutrition, vol. 38, no. 2, 2019, pp. 668-675, doi: 10.1016/j.clnu.2018.04.004.

59 of 60

Works Cited

Mayo Clinic. “Caffeine: How Much Is Too Much?” 19 March 2022,

www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/caffeine/art-20045678.

McIlvain, Gary E. et al. “Caffeine Consumption Patterns and Beliefs of College Freshmen.” American

Journal of Health Education, vol. 42, no. 4, 2011, pp. 235-244, doi:10.1080/19325037.2011.10599193.

Riera-Sampol, Aina et al. “Caffeine Intake among Undergraduate Students: Sex Differences, Sources,

Motivations, and Associations with Smoking Status and Self-Reported Sleep Quality.” Nutrients vol. 14,8 1661. 16 Apr. 2022, doi:10.3390/nu14081661.

60 of 60

Thank you

Do you have any questions?

CREDITS: This presentation template was created by Slidesgo, including icons by Flaticon, infographics & images by Freepik and illustrations by Stories