TCC- Social Norming

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Solutions September 2007
TCC's Social Norming Program at North High School by: Maggie Helseth
TCC’s Social Norming Campaign at North High School In an effort to reduce bullying behavior at North High School, the Conflict Center has implemented an anti-bullying campaign built around the concept of social norming. This three-year effort began in the spring of 2006 with a school-wide survey that asked students about their personal bullying behavior and their perception of other students’ bullying behavior. TCC and the OMNI Institute, a Denver-based social science research firm, analyzed the results from the 2006 survey and determined the specific areas in which students most misperceived the norms around bullying. In almost every area, students reported that they did not bully but that they thought other students did. For example, most students reported that they did not “hit, push, or shove” other students. However, most students thought that majority of other students did “hit, push, or shove” other students. Throughout the 2006-2007 school year, TCC staff and interns conducted focus groups with students and, with the information and feedback they received at those focus groups, created a series of posters that educated students on the actual norms around bullying. These posters were hung in hallways and classrooms throughout North High School. At the end of the 2007 school year, students were given another survey similar to the one they received in 2006. From 2006 to 2007, the survey scores showed decreased rates of bullying among NHS students. Also, students on the 2007 survey were more likely to report that their classmates did not bully. TCC’s anti-bullying campaign will continue through 2008, with another full year of poster creation and display and culminating with a final bullying survey in the spring of 2008.	What is Social Norming? Social norming is an intervention that has been used for over 20 years to prevent and reduce alcohol and drug use among college students. It has subsequently been used successfully with both high school and middle school students. Here’s how it works: As a general rule, students want to fit in with their fellow students. For many, “fitting in” means doing what they think most of their peers are doing. For example, if a student thinks that most of her classmates regularly drink alcohol, she will be more likely to drink. Time and again, studies among high school students suggest that the majority of high school students do not, in fact, regularly drink alcohol. However, the majority of high school students think that most of their peers do regularly drink alcohol. A social norming approach to reducing alcohol consumption would, thus, involve educating the student body on the actual norms – in this case, that most students do not regularly drink alcohol. As one would expect, once students were educated on the actual norms, the rate of alcohol consumption among students generally does decline, as most students want to adhere to the norm. The concept of social norming is not only used to reduce alcohol consumption. It can, indeed, be applied to reduce a number of negative behaviors among students, and, really, people of all ages. Once people learn that the norm is to not engage in a given negative behavior, the rate of engagement in that behavior will likely decline.

Solutions September 2007

TCC's Social Norming Program at North High School

by: Maggie Helseth

TCC’s Social Norming Campaign at North High School

In an effort to reduce bullying behavior at North High School, the Conflict Center has implemented an anti-bullying campaign built around the concept of social norming. This three-year effort began in the spring of 2006 with a school-wide survey that asked students about their personal bullying behavior and their perception of other students’ bullying behavior.

TCC and the OMNI Institute, a Denver-based social science research firm, analyzed the results from the 2006 survey and determined the specific areas in which students most misperceived the norms around bullying. In almost every area, students reported that they did not bully but that they thought other students did. For example, most students reported that they did not “hit, push, or shove” other students. However, most students thought that majority of other students did “hit, push, or shove” other students.

Throughout the 2006-2007 school year, TCC staff and interns conducted focus groups with students and, with the information and feedback they received at those focus groups, created a series of posters that educated students on the actual norms around bullying. These posters were hung in hallways and classrooms throughout North High School.
At the end of the 2007 school year, students were given another survey similar to the one they received in 2006. From 2006 to 2007, the survey scores showed decreased rates of bullying among NHS students. Also, students on the 2007 survey were more likely to report that their classmates did not bully.

TCC’s anti-bullying campaign will continue through 2008, with another full year of poster creation and display and culminating with a final bullying survey in the spring of 2008.

What is Social Norming?

Social norming is an intervention that has been used for over 20 years to prevent and reduce alcohol and drug use among college students. It has subsequently been used successfully with both high school and middle school students. Here’s how it works:

As a general rule, students want to fit in with their fellow students. For many, “fitting in” means doing what they think most of their peers are doing. For example, if a student thinks that most of her classmates regularly drink alcohol, she will be more likely to drink.
Time and again, studies among high school students suggest that the majority of high school students do not, in fact, regularly drink alcohol. However, the majority of high school students think that most of their peers do regularly drink alcohol.

A social norming approach to reducing alcohol consumption would, thus, involve educating the student body on the actual norms – in this case, that most students do not regularly drink alcohol. As one would expect, once students were educated on the actual norms, the rate of alcohol consumption among students generally does decline, as most students want to adhere to the norm.

The concept of social norming is not only used to reduce alcohol consumption. It can, indeed, be applied to reduce a number of negative behaviors among students, and, really, people of all ages. Once people learn that the norm is to not engage in a given negative behavior, the rate of engagement in that behavior will likely decline.