Research In Progress | Completed Projects | Potential Projects | Legacy Projects | Prioritization
The following list presents Faunalytics’ completed original studies in reverse chronological order, beginning with the most recent.
“Reduce” Or “Go Veg”? Effects On Meal Choice (February 2020)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Experiment/RCT, Inferential Statistics, Canada
In this campus-based randomized controlled trial, we found that advocating for meat reduction led to more meatless meal purchases than advocating for vegetarianism, because so many more people were willing to try reduction. The results point to a need to use strong, well-designed pledges and support people in maintaining the commitments they make.
Report | Data & Materials | Effective Pledges Fact Sheet
The Rise Of Veg, The Fall Of Meat: A Restaurant Case Study (February 2020)
Private Data, Quantitative, Case Study, Descriptive Statistics, Canada
In this analysis, we looked at patterns of veg and meat orders from a campus café over the past five years, finding an encouraging upward trend. While it wouldn’t be accurate for us to extrapolate the results from this case study out to all restaurants in all contexts, the results seem to dovetail with what we see happening on a larger scale. They also suggest avenues for how to deliberately shift consumer choice toward more veg options.
Donating to One Versus Millions (November 2019) 
Donation Research Program
Donation Research Program
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Experiment/RCT, Inferential Statistics, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
Often, being an effective advocate means helping as many animals as possible, but evidence is mixed about whether this is the most effective way to solicit donations. Psychological research has found that people are often more willing to give to an “identifiable victim,” which suggests that a single individual who represents the cause, like Hope the Pig, may encourage more donations than a statistic about the number of individuals suffering. At the same time, the type of people who are willing to donate to farmed animals may differ in their motivations from those who donate to other causes, like companion animals.
In this study, we tested the impact of a donation appeal for farmed vs. companion animals using a single individual versus statistics about total suffering. The results include a comparison of those appeals as well as data about overall levels of donation to farmed and companion animals, and the types of donors who support them.
Faunalytics’ Animal Tracker: Animal-Related Attitudes and Behavior (2008 – 2019)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Repeated Cross-Sectional, Quantitative, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
In 2019 Faunalytics completed the 12th and final year of the animal protection movement’s only repeated cross-sectional study of opinions and behavior about animal issues. The Animal Tracker covered a wide range of animal topics and provides detailed demographic information for a representative sample of U.S. adults.
Report & Resource Hub | Data & Materials | Graphing Tool
Animal Tracker Capstone Analysis
Faunalytics Dataset, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, USA
The final analysis of the Animal Tracker segmented respondents into categories–Advocates, Allies, Adversaries, and Neutrals–then looked at the patterns for each of those categories. Who are the animal advocates?
Impact of Corporate Commitments on Consumer Attitudes: A Qualitative Study (May 2019)
Public Data, Faunalytics Dataset, Qualitative, Text Analysis
The primary goal of corporate lobbying for welfare reform is to improve the lives of large numbers of animals at once. Early campaigns have been successful, but the continued success of this movement relies on momentum and corporations’ perceptions that the changes will improve their bottom line. It is important for advocates to understand the public reaction to successful campaigns in order to anticipate barriers and benefits to future actions.
This study’s results provide good news for corporations and the advocates who work with them.
Who are the Vegetarians? (April 2019/June 2018)
Public Data, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, Population Estimates, USA
This two-part report examined the characteristics of self-described vegetarians in the U.S. using publicly available data from the CDC’s National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Part 1 examines their demographic characteristics, and Part 2 considers why some self-described “vegetarians” actually eat meat.
Characteristics Of People Who Donate To Animal Causes (February 2019)
Donation Research Program
Donation Research Program
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
With a representative U.S. sample of more than 1,000 donors to animal causes, this study provides an in-depth look at who donates, as well as detailed information about how and why they prefer to do so. Advocacy groups can use the results to shape their donation appeals and methods. The results also inform future research comparing different approaches to increasing donations to animal causes.
Donor Segmentation: The People Who Donate To Non-Companion Animals
Faunalytics Dataset, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, USA
In this analysis, we considered two subgroups of animal-cause donors: donors to non-companion animal causes and companion-animal-exclusive donors. This analysis is important because animal causes receive less than 3% of all charitable contributions and the vast majority of animal-causes donors support companion animal charities, as shown in our top-line report with this dataset (above).
Which Groups Are Least Likely To Support Animal Causes (And Which Causes Do They Support Instead)?
Faunalytics Dataset, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, USA
The animal protection movement differs from the population at large in a number of ways, and this lack of diversity could pose problems. This report examines which groups are underrepresented among donors, and provides insight into their donation priorities by looking at the other causes they tend to support.
People Who Support Animal Causes: Who Gives More?
Faunalytics Dataset, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, USA
This report follows on from the first by simultaneously considering all the factors that predict donations and other important outcomes, to see which are the strongest predictors. In other words, which characteristics of animal-cause donors predict who gives the most, what other support they give, and under what circumstances?
Labeling Plant-Based Meat Alternatives to Appeal to Meat Consumers (January 2019)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
This study examined existing and novel names for plant-based meat alternatives. It provides data about U.S. meat consumers’ relative preferences for the different labels, and whether demographics play a significant role. These findings can be used by advocates and manufacturers to increase the appeal of plant-based options and target their appeals more effectively.
Associations Between Consumption Of Meats And Animal Product Alternatives
Faunalytics Dataset, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
In this analysis, we look in detail at different dietary habits and how the consumption of animal product alternatives and conventional meats are related.
Animal-Focused Reanalysis Of A Donor Dataset (November 2018)
Donation Research Program
Donation Research Program
Private Data, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
About 1% of all charitable giving goes to animal-related causes, which needs to change for advocates to have the resources they need. Faunalytics reanalyzed a dataset provided by the Blackbaud Institute and Edge Research to get a detailed profile of people who donate to animal causes. The results are insightful and have helped us in planning more research on this important topic.
Pork or Pig? Beef or Cow? Using Standard Euphemisms vs. Explicit Language (November 2018)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Experiment/RCT, Inferential Statistics, USA
In two randomized controlled trials (RCTs) Faunalytics tested whether referring to meat by the animal it came from would have an immediate effect on attitudes or reported consumption. To our surprise, the answer was no!
Global Animal Slaughter Statistics And Charts (October 2018)
Public Data, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, Global
This series of statistics and charts explores more than 50 years of animal slaughter trends. The data were pulled from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations.
Attitudes toward Farmed Animals in BRIC Countries (September 2018)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA, Brazil, Russia, India, China
We completed a multi-national “BRIC” study to compare attitudes and behavior regarding farmed animals and veg*nism across five different countries (including the U.S.). The BRIC countries – Brazil, Russia, India, and China — are rapidly increasing their consumption of animal products, yet there is little research for these countries. The research revealed that most BRIC residents favor better farmed animal welfare laws, and much more!
Naturalness Concerns And Clean Meat Acceptance (August 2018)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Experiment/RCT, Inferential Statistics, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
Faunalytics completed a randomized controlled trial to find ways of describing “clean” meat (from cells, not animals) that could address naturalness concerns and increase acceptance. We found that 66% of people were willing to try clean meat, 46% were willing to buy clean meat regularly, and 53% were willing to eat clean meat as a replacement for conventional meat!
Report | Data & Materials | Other Resources
How Much Will Consumers Pay For Clean Meat?
Faunalytics Dataset, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
Faunalytics’ original study of clean meat acceptance included a measure of how much consumers would pay. This analysis provides more detail about those amounts.
How Does Video Outreach Impact Pork Consumption? (February 2018)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Experiment/RCT, Inferential Statistics, USA
In partnership with Animal Equality, Faunalytics conducted a randomized controlled trial in a realistic animal advocacy context. The results showed that Animal Equality’s pig-focused videos had a significant impact on pork consumption compared to a no-video control condition. In addition to the full report, we also published a post about lessons learned from this large-scale field study to help others who want to undertake similar research.
Study of Current and Former Vegetarians and Vegans (December 2014)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, Population Estimates, USA
This comprehensive study examined key factors in current and former vegetarians’ and vegans’ decisions to adopt (and sometimes give up) their diets. Results were drawn from a representative sample of more than 11,000 adults in the U.S. and showed that approximately 4 in 5 vegetarians resume eating meat at some point.
