How negative descriptive norms for healthy eating undermine the effects of positive injunctive norms
Abstract
Healthy eating intentions were assessed as a function of theory of planned behavior variables and manipulated group norm salience. Participants ( n = 119) were exposed (or not) to a positive injunctive norm that their fellow students approve of eating healthily, and (or not) to a negative descriptive norm that their fellow students do not eat healthily. A significant interaction emerged. When a negative descriptive norm was made salient, participants exposed to a positive injunctive norm reported significantly lower intentions to eat healthily. When no descriptive norm was given, exposure to a positive injunctive norm had no effect. The results suggest the weakness of manipulated injunctive norm salience in the health domain, and the importance of investigating the interactive effects of referent group norms.
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Staunton et al. found that students told most peers do not eat healthily reported lower intentions to eat healthily than controls.
“students told that most of their peers do not eat healthily (but think that people should do so) subsequently reported significantly lower intentions to eat healthily themselves compared to controls (Staunton et al. [2014]).”
From Science Communication and the Problematic Impact of Descriptive Norms (2023) · cites this paper as Staunton et al. [2014]
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Science Communication and the Problematic Impact of Descriptive Norms
Peters, U. (2023) · The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science · doi:10.1086/715001 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
- Authors
- Staunton, M., Louis, W. R., Smith, J. R., Terry, D. J., & McDonald, R. I.
- Affiliations
- The University of Queensland (AU)
- University of Exeter (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Louis, Winnifred R.
- Venue
- Journal of Applied Social Psychology
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2014-01-26
- Volume
- 44
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 319-330
- ISSN
- 0021-9029 (ISSN-L)
- 1559-1816
- OpenAlex
- W1920405066
- Cited by
- 73
- References
- 79
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 13 · 2020: 12 · 2019: 5 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 4 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 4 · 2014: 2
- FWCI
- 8.21
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Applied Social Psychology (publishedVersion)
- Open Research Exeter (University of Exeter) (acceptedVersion)
- eSpace (Curtin University) (submittedVersion)
- Figshare (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Australian Research Council (DP0877146)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Behavioral Health and Interventions
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Literature and Literary Theory › Media Influence and Health
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Psychology of Social Influence
- Keywords
- healthy eating, descriptive norms, injunctive norms, theory of planned behavior, eating intentions, norm salience, reference groups, social influence, health behavior
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