Eating as Multidimensional

As we have learned through readings and discussed in class, the concept of eating is multidimensional. It spans further than nourishment, and involves dimensions of the self, situation, time, etc. The readings regarding food grammar by Bisogni et al and Douglas work to understand this concept and highlight the importance of food being more than an item.
Bisogni et al's research was particularly interesting to me because it provided a conceptual framework that had eight different dimensions regarding food. These dimensions, all intertwined, could be used to describe a particular person's eating episode. This is important because it helps prove the idea that food and eating episodes are not only linked, but involve much more than just the practice of eating. The idea that the dimensions making up this framework are interconnected helps give meaning to the concept of eating and eating episodes that span much farther than the action of eating, and look into questions such as why, when, or how. One aspect that caught my attention within this research was the idea that food and drink is only one one many different dimensions involved in an episode. This research highlights the importance of looking beyond the physical act of eating (or what someone chooses to eat) and begs readers to assess other dimensions of eating episodes. By assessing other dimensions of episodes, not simply the food being consumed, researchers and readers are able to learn much more about the meaning of an eating episode; they will be able to learn about social setting, mental processes, activities, etc. In other words, the food and drink of an episode is actually minor in regards to the overall episode; by delving into the other dimensions of an episode, we can learn much, much more about people, their habits, and their decisions.
In summary, the conceptual framework offered by Bisogni et. al is quite important in regards to food-related behavior. It is a framework that looks beyond the mere act of eating food as an item, and into dimensions and features that make or create an eating episode. Now that research has proven that the interactions between personal, social, and environmental factors are not easily distinguishable, I wonder if the dimensions and features that come together to make this framework can be taken apart to assess food-related behaviors of particular cultures or even subcultures? In other words, can the features and dimensions used to create this framework be looked at explicitly to learn more about a group of people?