![]() Many pro-environmental messages suffer from the same problem: while deploring thecurrent state of the environment, they suggest that it is normal to engage in anti-environmental behavior. undesirable, was less effective than an alternative statement that avoided the normative message. Bator and Cialdini showed that a PSA describing littering as normative, though. Some of these PSAs included the unintentional message that littering is common. In a classic study, Bator and Cialdini (2000) looked at public service announcements (PSAs) designed to reduce littering in a national park. descriptive information about norms can be conveyed unintentionally, with potentially negative effects on sustainable behavior. These norms, in turn, predicted recycling behavior. Compared to a group that only received information or information plus prompts, the participants who had a block leader showed personal norms with increased support for recycling. ![]() Hopper and Nielsen (1991), for example, used block leaders to prompt and encourage recycling. ![]() It may be possible to highlight information about curtailment behaviors by describing them in more active terms: for example, "I reduced my gas use by 15% by shopping once a week instead of twice." Normative information can be obtained through direct observation of behavior (modeling) or through descriptive information: for example, "87% of Americans have donated to an environmental organization." Targeting influential individuals to serve as models may be an efficient way of using norms to change behavior. Some effort may be needed to highlight pro-environmental norms. Promoting Sustainable Behavior (the products that are not purchased, the car trips that are foregone). ![]() Norms can be effective for curtailment behavior, behavioral choices, and technology choices, but it is easier to observe what someone does than to be aware of what someone is NOT doing. People are not always aware of the explanations for their own behavior. Interestingly a survey of (different) residents showed that they described social norms as the least important reason to conserve, citing environmental protection and benefits to society as the primary reasons. the energy use of a typical homeowner was more effective in reducing energy use than a message based on environmental protection, social responsibility, self-interest, or merely behavioral information. Among residents in a California town, a message describing the actual. A field experiment by Nolan demonstrated the power of social norms in affecting sustainable behavior. Because we tend to like people who behave the same way we do and dislike those who deviate, social support is more available to those who conform than to those who do not. In addition, human society rewards conformity. If my neighbor establishes a backyard wildlife habitat, I not only learn that it is a possible and perhaps acceptable thing to do, I also get procedural information about how to do it. Other people may have knowledge that we ourselves lack by imitating the behaviors of others with more experience, we take advantage of their knowledge. example They found that French armers who used sustainable practices were influenced more by social norms than by their own environmental awareness. Social norms are another key determinant of behavior. How could you use social norms and conformity to promote sustainable behavior on campus or in town?
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