Facts about Social Norms Theory
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Social norms interventions have been applied beyond alcohol use to address behaviors including tobacco use, sexual health, and academic misconduct.
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Pluralistic ignorance is a key mechanism in Social Norms Theory, where individuals privately reject a norm but assume others accept it.
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The theory distinguishes between descriptive norms, which describe what most people do, and injunctive norms, which describe what most people approve or disapprove of.
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A core application of Social Norms Theory is in college health campaigns, where correcting misperceptions about peer drinking has been shown to reduce alcohol consumption.
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Developed by H. Wesley Perkins and Alan Berkowitz in the 1980s, Social Norms Theory holds that people overestimate the prevalence of risky behaviors among peers.