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Being doing a lot of reading on the issues of knife images. Thanks to @RobertCialdini for supporting this Ok. Bear with me. It is widely recognised that communications that activate social norms can be effective in producing societally beneficial conduct. 1/13
Not so recognised are the circumstances where normative info can backfire to produce the opposite effect of what the communicator is trying to achieve. It’s understandable why people want to mobilise action against it by depicting it as regrettably frequent. 2/13
Examples include drug taking, alcohol consumption. Although true , campaigners, police & media have missed something important. Within the statement many people are doing this undesirable thing lurks the powerful & undercutting normative message “many people are doing this” 3/13
Only when we align descriptive norms (what’s happening) with what people typically approve or disapprove can one really capitalise on the power of such appeals. You still with me? 4/13
When we fail to aign these norms we put at risk our efforts to persuade others to stop 5/13
Anyway watch this much acclaimed US advert from the 1970’s known as the Iron Eyes Cody Spot it focuses on pollution in the US. It ends with the main character with a tear rolling down his cheek & the slogan “people start pollution, people can stop it” 6/13
Whilst acclaimed & a winner of many awards it didn’t really have impact. Why? Research suggests that the message & showing of all the pollution reinforced the many people are doing this norm. Changing the advert to show less pollution changed the descriptive norm (the story) 7/13
So when the disapproving tear appeared viewers would be exposed to the norm that correlates to what most people approve of and guide behaviour in same direction. 8/13
So for knife images. There’s a need to report the story but there’s also a need to guide population to the norms that majority of society follows. So when @RiaChatter focused on knife carrying recently she looked young people who were taking a stand against violence. 9/13
In doing so she told the story (descriptive norm) but she also guided us to the main norm which society approves of 10/13
Communications need to keep steering the ship to the norms that majority of society accepts. When we don’t align these norms we make the big mistake and inadvertently reinforce the story we are reporting. Im tired and now need a nap after that 11/13
Much of this comes from research into protecting the environment but I see implications for crime prevention 12/13
