Abstract
In this chapter, the Focus Theory of Normative Conduct is discussed. This theory posits that social norms provide people with decisional shortcuts of how to behave in certain situations, either because it is typical or normal (descriptive social norms) or because it is appropriate or desired (injunctive social norms). This theory further specifies that any given social norm will only influence behavior when it is activated at the moment of the behavioral decision, that is, when that specific norm is made salient or when an individual’s attention is focused on that specific norm while choosing their path of action (normative focus). Depending on the specific context, both descriptive and injunctive social norms may be effective in engendering behavioral change. Effectiveness of social norm interventions has been shown to depend on whether people have the resources to attend to the social norm in question to the extent that it becomes focal in guiding their behavior and on whether people can identify with the social norm group.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Aarts, H., & Dijksterhuis, A. (2003). The silence of the library: environment, situational norm, and social behavior. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84, 18–28.
Abrahamse, W., & Steg, L. (2013). Social influence approaches to encourage resource conservation: A meta-analysis. Global Environmental Change, 23, 1773–1785.
Anderson, J. R. (1983). The architecture of cognition. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Asch, S. E. (1951). Effects of group pressure upon the modification and distortion of judgments. In H. Guetzkow (Ed.), Group leadership and men (pp. 177–190). Pittsburg, PA: Carnegie Press.
Bandura, A. (1977). Social learning theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Baumeister, R. F., Vohs, K. D., & Tice, D. M. (2007). The strength model of self-control. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 16, 351–355.
Berkowitz, L. (1972). Social norms, feelings, and other factors affecting helping and altruism. In L. Berkowitz (Ed.), Advances in experimental social psychology (Vol. 6, pp. 63–108). San Diego, CA: Academic Press.
Birnbaum, A., & Sagarin, E. (1976). Norms and human behavior. New York, NY: Praeger.
Bohner, G., & Schlüter, L. E. (2014). A room with a viewpoint revisited: Descriptive norms and hotel guests’ towel reuse behavior. PLoS One, 9, e104086.
Bosson, J. K., Parrott, D. J., Swan, S. C., Kuchynka, S. L., & Schramm, A. T. (2015). A dangerous boomerang: Injunctive norms, hostile sexist attitudes, and male-to-female sexual aggression. Aggressive Behavior, 41, 580–593.
Brehm, J. W. (1966). A theory of psychological reactance. New York, NY: Academic Press.
Burchell, K., Rettie, R., & Patel, K. (2013). Marketing social norms: social marketing and the ‘social norm approach. Journal of Consumer Behaviour, 12, 1–9.
Campo, S., & Cameron, K. A. (2006). Differential effects of exposure to social norms campaigns: A cause for concern. Health Communication, 19, 209–219.
Carlsson, R., Schimmack, U., Williams, D. R., & Bürkner, P. C. (2017). Bayes factors from pooled data are no substitute for Bayesian meta-analysis: Commentary on Scheibehenne, Jamil, and Wagenmakers (2016). Psychological Science, 28, 1694–1697.
Cialdini, R. B. (1988). Influence: Science and practice (2nd ed.). Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman.
Cialdini, R. B., & Goldstein, N. J. (2004). Social influence: Compliance and conformity. Annual Review of Psychology, 55, 591–621.
Cialdini, R. B., Kallgren, C. A., & Reno, R. R. (1991). A focus theory of normative conduct: A theoretical refinement and reevaluation of the role of norms in human behavior. In L. Berkowitz (Ed.), Advances in experimental social psychology (Vol. 24, pp. 201–234). San Diego, CA: Academic Press.
Cialdini, R. B., Reno, R. R., & Kallgren, C. A. (1990). A focus theory of normative conduct: Recycling the concept of norms to reduce littering in public places. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 58, 1015–1026.
Clapp, J. D., Lange, J. E., Russell, C., Shillington, A., & Voas, R. B. (2003). A failed norms social marketing campaign. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 64, 409–414.
Darley, J. M., & Latane, B. (1970). Norms and normative behavior: Field studies of social interdependence. In J. Macaulay & L. Berkowitz (Eds.), Altruism and helping behavior (pp. 83–102). San Diego, CA: Academic Press.
De Ridder, D. T. D., De Vet, E., Stok, F. M., Adriaanse, M. A., & De Wit, J. B. F. (2013). Obesity, overconsumption and self-regulation failure: The unsung role of eating appropriateness standards. Health Psychology Review, 7, 146–165.
Deutsch, M., & Gerard, H. B. (1955). A study of normative and informational social influences upon individual judgment. The Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 51, 629–636.
Fishbein, M., & Ajzen, I. (1975). Belief, attitude, intention, and behavior. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
Goldstein, N. J., Cialdini, R. B., & Griskevicius, V. (2008). A room with a viewpoint: Using social norms to motivate environmental conservation in hotels. Journal of Consumer Research, 35, 472–482.
Granfield, R. (2005). Alcohol use in college: Limitations on the transformation of social norms. Addiction Research & Theory, 13, 281–292.
Harvey, M. D., & Enzle, M. E. (1981). A cognitive model of social norms for understanding the transgression-helping effect. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 41, 866–875.
Jacobson, R. P., Mortensen, C. R., & Cialdini, R. B. (2011). Bodies obliged and unbound: Differentiated response tendencies for injunctive and descriptive social norms. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 100, 433–448.
Jacobson, R. P., Mortensen, C. R., Jacobson, K. J., & Cialdini, R. B. (2015). Self-control moderates the effectiveness of influence attempts highlighting injunctive social norms. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 6, 718–726.
Johnston, K. L., & White, K. M. (2003). Binge-drinking: A test of the role of group norms in the theory of planned behaviour. Psychology and Health, 18, 63–77.
Kahneman, D. (2011). Thinking, fast and slow. New York, NY: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.
Kallgren, C. A., Reno, R. R., & Cialdini, R. B. (2000). A focus theory of normative conduct: When norms do and do not affect behavior. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 26, 1002–1012.
Kredentser, M. S., Fabrigar, L. R., Smith, S. M., & Fulton, K. (2012). Following what people think we should do versus what people actually do: Elaboration as a moderator of the impact of descriptive and injunctive norms. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 3, 341–347.
Mair, J., & Bergin-Seers, S. (2010). The effect of interventions on the environmental behaviour of Australian motel guests. Tourism and Hospitality Research, 10, 255–268.
Manning, M. (2009). The effects of subjective norms on behaviour in the theory of planned behaviour: a meta-analysis. British Journal of Social Psychology, 48, 649–705.
Marini, M. M. (1984). Age and sequencing norms in the transition to adulthood. Social Forces, 63, 229–244.
Mortensen, C. R., Neel, R., Cialdini, R. B., Jaeger, C. M., Jacobson, R. P., & Ringel, M. M. (in press). Trending norms: A lever for encouraging behaviors performed by the minority. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 10, 201–210.
Nisa, C., Varum, C., & Botelho, A. (2017). Promoting Sustainable Hotel Guest Behavior: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, 58, 354–363.
Perkins, H. W., & Berkowitz, A. D. (1986). Perceiving the community norms of alcohol use among students: Some research implications for campus alcohol education programming. International Journal of the Addictions, 21, 961–976.
Reese, G., Loew, K., & Steffgen, G. (2014). A towel less: Social norms enhance pro-environmental behavior in hotels. The Journal of Social Psychology, 154, 97–100.
Reno, R. R., Cialdini, R. B., & Kallgren, C. A. (1993). The transsituational influence of social norms. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 64, 104–112.
Rimal, R. N., & Real, K. (2003). Understanding the influence of perceived norms on behaviors. Communication Theory, 13, 184–203.
Salmon, S. J., Fennis, B. M., De Ridder, D. T. D., Adriaanse, M. A., & De Vet, E. (2014). Health on impulse: When low self-control promotes healthy food choices. Health Psychology, 33, 103–109.
Scheibehenne, B., Jamil, T., & Wagenmakers, E. J. (2016). Bayesian evidence synthesis can reconcile seemingly inconsistent results: The case of hotel towel reuse. Psychological Science, 27, 1043–1046.
Schultz, W. P., Khazian, A. M., & Zaleski, A. C. (2008). Using normative social influence to promote conservation among hotel guests. Social Influence, 3, 4–23.
Schwartz, S. H. (1973). Normative explanations of helping behavior: A critique, proposal, and empirical test. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 9, 349–364.
Sherif, M. (1936). The psychology of social norms. New York, NY: Harper.
Sieverding, M., Decker, S., & Zimmermann, F. (2010). Information about low participation in cancer screening demotivates other people. Psychological Science, 21, 941–943.
Stok, F. M., De Ridder, D. T. D., De Vet, E., & De Wit, J. B. (2012). Minority talks: The influence of descriptive social norms on fruit intake. Psychology & Health, 27, 956–970.
Stok, F. M., De Ridder, D. T. D., De Vet, E., & De Wit, J. B. (2014). Don’t tell me what I should do, but what others do: The influence of descriptive and injunctive peer norms on fruit consumption in adolescents. British Journal of Health Psychology, 19, 52–64.
Stok, F. M., De Vet, E., De Wit, J. B., Renner, B., & De Ridder, D. T. (2015). Communicating eating-related rules. Suggestions are more effective than restrictions. Appetite, 86, 45–53.
Sunstein, C. R. (1996). Social norms and social roles. Columbia Law Review, 96, 903–968.
Terrier, L., & Marfaing, B. (2015). Using social norms and commitment to promote pro-environmental behavior among hotel guests. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 44, 10–15.
Terry, D. J., & Hogg, M. A. (1996). Group norms and the attitude-behavior relationship: A role for group identification. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 22, 776–793.
Terry, D. J., Hogg, M. A., & White, K. M. (1999). The theory of planned behaviour: self-identity, social identity and group norms. British Journal of Social Psychology, 38, 225–244.
Toch, H., & Klofas, J. (1984). Pluralistic ignorance, revisited. In G. M. Stephenson & J. H. Davis (Eds.), Progress in applied social psychology (Vol. 2). New York, NY: Wiley.
Turner, J., Perkins, H. W., & Bauerle, J. (2008). Declining negative consequences related to alcohol misuse among students exposed to a social norms marketing intervention on a college campus. Journal of American College Health, 57, 85–94.
Turner, J. C. (1999). Some current issues on research on social identity and self-categorization theories. In N. Ellemers, R. Spears, & B. Doosje (Eds.), Social identity: Context, commitment, content (pp. 6–34). Oxford, UK: Blackwell.
Vohs, K. D., & Baumeister, R. F. (Eds.). (2016). Handbook of self-regulation: Research, theory, and applications (3rd ed.). New York, NY: The Guilford Press.
Wansink, B., & Sobal, J. (2007). Mindless eating: The 200 daily food decisions we overlook. Environment and Behavior, 39, 106–123.
Wylie, R. C. (1961). The self concept. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press.
Yun, D., & Silk, K. J. (2011). Social norms, self-identity, and attention to social comparison information in the context of exercise and healthy diet behavior. Health Communication, 26, 275–285.
Ziller, R. C., Hagey, J., Smith, M., & Long, B. H. (1969). Self-esteem: a self-social construct. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 33, 84–95.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2019 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Stok, F.M., de Ridder, D.T.D. (2019). The Focus Theory of Normative Conduct. In: Sassenberg, K., Vliek, M.L.W. (eds) Social Psychology in Action. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-13788-5_7
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-13788-5_7
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-13787-8
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-13788-5
eBook Packages: Behavioral Science and PsychologyBehavioral Science and Psychology (R0)