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“Social proof is one of the most powerful behavioral motivators in the land. Social scientists have found hundreds of ways to nudge positive behavior change by reframing messages from 'you should' to 'others do.' People like you pay their taxes on time! They use less energy! They save more money! You really should, too.” –Charlotte Blank, Chief Behavioral Officer, Maritz
The advent of social psychology in the 1950s began to codify the power of social norms, exposing just how much our behavior is influenced by other people. In many ways, however, scientists were simply catching up on techniques that influencers had known for centuries. Flash forward to 2008, when nudging became a tour de force in public intervention and policymaking. Governmental “nudge units,” non-profit consulting firms, and social mission-driven businesses began to crop up around the globe, looking to make the world a better place via nudging.
As described above by Ms. Blank, early success using social norms (or social proof, or social referencing) to increase tax compliance and reduce household energy consumption made this nudge a particular favorite within the interventionist’s toolbox. In fact, a recent review found that upwards of 15% of all tests of nudges published from 2008 to 2017 focused on social norms.
Social norm campaigns for college students
If you’ve spent enough time on a college campus, you’ve surely seen social norms used to influence students. Perhaps the most common examples revolve around substance use: telling students that the majority of their peers don’t drink, or don’t binge drink, or don’t drink and drive, or don’t smoke pot, and so on. Further examples include norm campaigns to prevent sexual violence or to take advantage of mental health resources. In my own work, we’ve had great success using social norms to motivate students to seek tutoring or visit a campus food pantry.
But before you slap a norm on every single action you want students to do, there are some important caveats. Leveraging norms can be a powerful strategy among students who are confused by the novelty and complexity of the college environment, but norms can be volatile and will blow up in your face if you’re not careful. Here are four guidelines to consider before rolling out your next social norming campaign.
Figure out which behaviors are “norm-able”
Last weekend, I ran 14 miles because I enjoy running, value physical fitness, and running has been more or less habitual for me for the past dozen years. Knowing how many other people run or for how long they run is unlikely to impact my behavior. I also mowed the lawn, which I dislike, but continue to do because my neighbors do and expect the same from me. Likewise, when my neighborhood's yard work norms shifted temporarily during the early days of the pandemic and everyone’s grass was long, you can bet I was more than happy to follow that trend. When it comes to lawn care, social norms are basically the only thing determining my behavior.
Dr. Cristina Bicchieri emphasizes that norms are only effective nudges when a behavior is conditional on what others do. Thinking about college students, I’ve seen firsthand how many students perceive self-reliance as the norm; breaking that misconception gets more students to seek help for their academic, social, and financial challenges. On the other hand, norms related to substance use are not always effective because we know that many students drink or get high for emotional reasons, not social ones, or simply because it has become habitual.
Before designing a norming intervention, talk to students about why they behave the way they do and determine whether those behaviors are likely to be swayed by a change in norms. But bear in mind people aren't always capable of telling you what does or does not influence their behavior, so you may need to experiment with norms and have a robust evaluation plan in place to determine their impact.
Norm solutions, not problems
There are countless examples of PSAs that emphasize the size of a problem as a means of influencing behavior. Perhaps most famous is the Iron Eyes Cody ad from Keep America Beautiful, showing a stoic Native American shedding a single tear over litter and pollution. More recently, South Dakota launched a campaign featuring a diverse array of normal people declaring, “I’m on meth.” The thinking is that if only people knew what a big problem littering or meth addiction are, they would do something about it. Unfortunately, research tells us that norming the problem—that lots of people pollute or use meth—leads to inaction or, worse yet, adoption of maladaptive behaviors because of our tendency to move toward, not against, social norms.
When thinking about challenges that college students face, we often have the same temptation. One out of three students fails their first midterm. 73% of students struggle with mental health issues. Many students don’t have enough to eat. While there is value to de-stigmatizing these common yet often shame-inducing experiences, you run the risk that those norms suggest to students that they shouldn’t take action. Instead, focus norm campaigns on how students can prevent or remedy problems rather than making the problems seem normal. 2 out of 3 students form study groups. 46% of students make appointments at the counseling center. Many students get free groceries from the pantry.
Norm realistically
If I told you that 84% of people are wearing masks when they go out, would you believe me? If you watched the news coverage of anti-mask protests and throngs of unmasked revelers out for Memorial Day celebrations, you probably don’t. But according to a recent survey of over 4,500 U.S. adults, that statistic is accurate. Unfortunately, even when the truth is on your side, norm campaigns will fail when they conflict with people’s pre-existing beliefs. Norms are most effective, in fact, when people have no pre-existing beliefs about a behavior, allowing the nudge to serve as their only reference point.
This same phenomenon may occur on your campus this fall. If enough students are visible without masks—even if those students are in the minority—norming mask-wearing may be ineffective. The same has been true for norming responsible alcohol use; sometimes the survey data just don’t match what students see with their own eyes. In most cases, you’ll do better to norm behaviors that are largely unseen, like completing the FAFSA or using mental health services, than those that are outwardly social, like drinking or mask-wearing.
Norm compassionately
Finally, before norming a new behavior you should ensure that those you target are capable of performing that behavior. A 2019 study nudged University of Toronto students that they should study 20 to 30 hours per week in order to earn As in their courses. The thinking went that if students knew about this standard and believed that studying 20 to 30 hours per week was common, they would then increase their own study time to match that of their peers. Unfortunately, this norm backfired. Instead of readjusting their study time, students falling short of the 20-hour threshold readjusted their expectations of how well they would do in class. Then, having accepted that they may only earn Bs or Cs, these students began studying even less than before. This nudge turned out to exemplify discouragement by peer excellence.
In the case of college students, we know that most are dealing with a lot right now. They’re taking classes, working, and raising families, all against the backdrop of a pandemic and a social uprising. So as you think about how to norm positive behaviors, make sure that the expectations you set don’t signal to some students that they're incapable of success and don’t belong in college.
As a behavioral science tool, norms are awesome, but they can’t be used indiscriminately. You must be selective about when, how, and for whom you leverage norms to change behaviors, and monitor the impact of any norming campaign for evidence of backlash. But used responsibly, norms can be incredibly effective for setting a path for lost students and helping them to navigate college throughout their academic careers.
References
Bicchieri, C. (2005). The grammar of society: The nature and dynamics of social norms. Cambridge University Press.
Cialdini, R. B. (2003). Crafting normative messages to protect the environment. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 12(4), 105-109.
Hummel, D., & Maedche, A. (2019). How effective is nudging? A quantitative review on the effect sizes and limits of empirical nudging studies. Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, 80, 47-59.
Oreopoulos, P., & Petronijevic, U. (2019). The remarkable unresponsiveness of college students to nudging and what we can learn from it (No. w26059). National Bureau of Economic Research.
