Center for Social Norms & Behavioral Dynamics
Research
This page contains detailed information, files and links to our current research projects, our latest research, core materials, and our full published research database.
Presenting our new Working Paper Series!
Access here pre-publication versions of our most recent research on social norms and behavioral dynamics!
New Research
Core Materials
The Grammar of Society (book)
Drawing on several intellectual traditions and methods, including those of social psychology, experimental economics and evolutionary game theory, Bicchieri provides an integrated account of how social norms emerge, why and when we follow them, and the situations where we are most likely to focus on relevant norms.
Applying Social Norms Theory in CATS Programming (report)
The primary goal of this document is to provide the necessary information on the importance, nature and application of the theory of social norms to sanitation specialists. This document distills insights from joint collaborations with UNICEF, and aims to promote positive social change with regard to many harmful collective patterns of behavior related to sanitation.
Norms in the Wild (book)
Is it possible to change social expectations around forced marriage, genital mutilations, and public health practices like vaccinations and sanitation? If so, how? What tools might we use? This short book explores how social norms work, and how changing them – changing preferences, beliefs, and especially social expectations – can potentially improve lives all around the world.
Social Determinants of Open Defecation: Phase 2 Materials (report)
In the second phase of our study of the social determinants of open defecation in India, we have produced a report detailing our diagnosis of a series of collective behaviors relevant to open defecation. We also describe patterns among our norms data to previously collected social network data. Furthermore, we track changes over time and other relevant patterns.
Our Research Database
Social beliefs and women’s role in sanitation decision making in Bihar, India: An exploratory mixed method study
Bibliography:
Ashraf S, Kuang J, Das U, Shpenev A, Thulin E, Bicchieri C (2022) Social beliefs and women’s role in sanitation decision making in Bihar, India: An exploratory mixed method study. PLoS ONE 17(1): e0262643. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0262643
Abstract:
In low- and middle-income countries, poor autonomy prevents women from making financial decisions, which may impact their access to improved sanitation facilities. Inadequate access to improved sanitation disproportionately affects women’s and children’s health and wellbeing. Although socio-cultural factors are known contributors to gender inequity, social beliefs that potentially motivate or dissuade women from making sanitation-related household decisions are not well understood. These beliefs may vary across settlement types. To empower more women to make sanitation-related decisions, the relevant socio-cultural norms and underlying social beliefs need to be addressed. In this mixed methods study, we explored women’s role in sanitation-related decision making in three settlement types, urban slums, peri-urban, and rural communities in Bihar. Trained qualitative researchers conducted six focus group discussions with women of two age groups: 18–30 years old, and 45–65 years old to understand the norm-focused factors around women’s role in getting a toilet for their household. Using insights generated from these group discussions, we developed and conducted a theory-driven survey in 2528 randomly selected participants, to assess the social beliefs regarding women making toilet construction decisions in these communities. Overall, 45% of the respondents reported making joint decisions to build toilets that involved both men and women household members. More women exclusively led this decision-making process in peri-urban (26%) and rural areas (35%) compared to urban slums (12%). Social beliefs that men commonly led household decisions to build toilets were negatively associated with women’s participation in decision making in urban slums (adjusted prevalence ratio, aPR: 0.53, 95% CI: 0.42, 0.68). Qualitative insights highlighted normative expectations to take joint decisions with elders, especially in joint family settings. Surrounding norms that limited women’s physical mobility and access to peers undermined their confidence in making large financial decisions involved in toilet construction. Women were more likely to be involved in sanitation decisions in peri-urban and rural contexts. Women’s involvement in such decisions was perceived as widely acceptable. This highlights the opportunity to increase women’s participation in sanitation decision making, particularly in urban contexts. As more women get involved in decisions to build toilets, highlighting this norm may encourage gender-equitable engagement in sanitation-related decisions in low-resource settings.
Sacrifice: An experiment on the political economy of extreme intergroup punishment
Bibliography:
Eckel, C. C., Fatas, E., & Kass, M. J. (2022). Sacrifice: An experiment on the political economy of extreme intergroup punishment. Journal of Economic Psychology, 102486.
Abstract:
We analyze the behavioral determinants of extreme punishment in intergroup conflict. Individuals contribute to team production by a tedious real effort task. Teams compete for a prize in asymmetric tournaments. Asymmetries are implemented as differences in the time available to complete the task and are generated by nature or by the decisions of one group, arbitrarily chosen. Relative to a symmetric baseline condition in which groups have identical time to complete the task, we study two different types of inequality: economic (one group gets more time than the other, chosen by nature) and political (one group determines how much time the other group is given). We allow for a particular form of intergroup punishment. Individuals in the disadvantaged group may attack and punish all individuals in the other group (thereby reducing their earnings by half) at an extreme price: if they decide to punish the other group, the disadvantaged group member must sacrifice all of their individual earnings. Our results strongly support the link between political asymmetries and extreme intergroup punishment. Relative to a control treatment with no asymmetries, economic inequality has no significant effect on the likelihood of intergroup punishment. However, there is a great deal of punishment in the political inequality treatment, where one group can actively oppress the other. Advantaged groups make very limited use of a conciliatory transfer, only marginally reducing punishment from disadvantaged groups. Interestingly, we find that skilled individuals are more likely to sacrifice themselves to harm the other group.
Examining norms and social expectations surrounding exclusive breastfeeding: Evidence from Mali
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C., Das, U., Gant, S., & Sander, R. (2022). Examining norms and social expectations surrounding exclusive breastfeeding: Evidence from Mali. World Development, 153, 105824. doi: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2022.105824
Abstract:
Do mothers' perceptions of community behavior and their beliefs about exclusive breastfeeding affect their own infant feeding behavior? We explore this relationship using a primary survey of 925 mothers with children of two years or below conducted in 2019 in the Kayes and Sikasso regions of Mali. Among other information, we collected self-reported data on the respondent’s social expectations about the beliefs and behaviors of their community members apart from their own infant feeding behavior. The findings from regression estimations, after controlling for a host of potential confounding factors, indicate that children whose mothers think most individuals in her community exclusively breastfeed their infants, regardless of factual accuracy, are significantly more likely to be exclusively breastfed in the first six months. Beliefs about community approval of exclusive infant breastfeeding behavior are also found to be significantly associated, albeit modestly. In addition, children of mothers who hold false but positive beliefs and over-predict the prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding practices in the community are more likely to be exclusively breastfed. Further, we utilize responses from hypothetical vignettes where the levels of social expectations are experimentally manipulated. Here, prevalence of and beliefs about community infant feeding behavior are randomized across the respondents and then they are asked to predict the breastfeeding behavior of an imaginary vignette character under such conditions. The findings indicate a positive and robust relationship between the prevalence of community level exclusive breastfeeding and the predicted behavior concerning exclusive breastfeeding. A number of additional tests are conducted to ensure that the estimates are not confounded by unobserved heterogeneity. We assert that our findings can potentially represent an important foundation for the design of interventions aimed at altering social expectations, and thus effecting a measurable change in infant breastfeeding behaviors.
A theory of social programs, legitimacy, and citizen cooperation with the state
Bibliography:
Aldama, A. (2021). A theory of social programs, legitimacy, and citizen cooperation with the state. Journal of Peace Research, 00223433211042792.
Abstract:
Aid and social programs are commonly used to fight insurgencies. However, sometimes they fail to achieve their goal of increasing citizen cooperation with the state. I propose a series of game-theoretic models that focus on the strategic interaction between a state and a citizen in the face of a challenge to the state’s monopoly of power by an insurgency. I argue that even if the provision of aid or social programs increases citizens’ intrinsic motivation to cooperate with the state, it does not necessarily translate into more cooperation. I show that citizen cooperation depends on whether the increase in the provision of aid is accompanied by an increase in the use of violent or hard tools by the state, the citizens’ expectation of future rewards, and the insurgency’s response. The models thus provide a rationale for why even if social programs increase state legitimacy, they may fail to increase citizen cooperation.
On the determinants of giving under risk
Bibliography:
Freundt, J., & Lange, A. (2017). On the determinants of giving under risk. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 142, 24-31.
Abstract:
By means of a laboratory experiment we investigate the role of risk preferences for prosocial behavior. Modifying the way the decision-maker or the recipient are exposed to risk, our design allows to identify how risk preferences impact giving-decisions. By measuring the decision-makers’ risk preferences regarding both their own as well as the recipients’ payoff, we generate new insights into how social preference theories may extend to risky situations.
On the voluntary provision of public goods under risk
Bibliography:
Freundt, J., & Lange, A. (2021). On the voluntary provision of public goods under risk. Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, 101727.
Abstract:
This paper studies how risk impacts the voluntary provision of public goods. In a laboratory experiment, we create variants of a public good game by separating the return a subject’s contribution generates for herself vs. the return her contribution generates to others. We find a detrimental effect of risk on public good provision when returns in both dimensions are positively correlated or independent. A negative correlation leads to more stable investments. Disentangling the impact of risk in each dimension, we find that investments particularly respond to risk in the return to others. Investigating the impact of these different types of risks can inform theories on the nature of social preferences.
The Behavioral Consequences of Conflict Exposure on Risk Preferences
Bibliography:
Fatas, E., Jiménez, N., Restrepo-Plaza, L., & Rincón, G. (2021). The Behavioral Consequences of Conflict Exposure on Risk Preferences. In Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Economics and Finance.
Abstract:
Violent conflict is a polyhedric phenomenon. Beyond the destruction of physical and human capital and the economic, political, and social costs war generates, there is an additional burden carried by victims: persistent changes in the way they make decisions. Exposure to violence generates changes in how individuals perceive other individuals from their group and other groups, how they discount the future, and how they assess and tolerate risk. The behavioral consequences of violence exposure can be documented using experiments in which participants make decisions in a controlled, incentive-compatible scenario. The external validity of experiments is reinforced when the studies are run in postconflict scenarios, for example, in Colombia, with real victims of conflict. The experimental tasks, therefore, may map risk attitudes among victims and nonvictims of the conflict who share a common background, and distinguish between different types of exposure (direct versus indirect) and different sources of violence (conflict-related versus criminal violence). The experimental evidence collected in Colombia is consistent with a long-lasting and substantial effect of conflict exposure on risk attitudes. Victims are more likely to take risks and less likely to make safe choices than nonvictims, controlling for demographic, socioeconomic, and attitudinal factors. The effect is significant only when the source of violence is conflict (exerted by guerrilla or paramilitary militias) and when violence is experienced directly by individuals. Indirect conflict exposure (suffered by close relatives) and criminal violence leave no significant mark on participants’ risk attitudes in the study.
A self-funding reward mechanism for tax compliance
Bibliography:
Fatas, E., Nosenzo, D., Sefton, M., & Zizzo, D. J. (2021). A self-funding reward mechanism for tax compliance. Journal of Economic Psychology, 86, 102421.
Abstract:
We compare in a laboratory experiment two audit-based tax compliance mechanisms that collect fines from those found non-compliant. The mechanisms differ in the way fines are redistributed to individuals who were either not audited or audited and found to be compliant. The first, as is the case in most extant tax systems, does not discriminate between the un-audited and those found compliant. The second targets the redistribution in favor of those found compliant. We find that targeting increases compliance when paying taxes generates a social return. We do not find any increase in compliance in a control treatment where individuals audited and found compliant receive symbolic rewards. We conclude that existing tax mechanisms have room for improvement by rewarding those audited and found compliant.
Understanding cross-cultural differences in peer reporting practices: evidence from tax evasion games in Moldova and France
Bibliography:
Romaniuc, R., Dubois, D., Dimant, E. et al. Understanding cross-cultural differences in peer reporting practices: evidence from tax evasion games in Moldova and France. Public Choice (2021). https://doi-org.proxy.library.upenn.edu/10.1007/s11127-021-00925-7
Abstract:
Authorities rely on reports from private citizens to detect and enforce more than a trivial portion of effective law-breaking. The present article is the first to study the cultural aspect of peer reporting experimentally. By collecting data in a post-Soviet country (Moldova), we focus in particular on how the Soviet legacy of using citizens as private informants may have a long-lasting effect on their willingness to cooperate with state authorities. We then contrast those effects with peer reporting behavior in France, a Western society. Our results suggest that participants in Moldova view cooperation with authorities as less socially acceptable than their counterparts in France. Our results also suggest that participants in Moldova engage less frequently in peer reporting than individuals in France. However, we also find that less peer reporting does not necessarily imply less tax compliance. Participants in both countries exhibit very similar tax compliance rates. We explain the effect of peer reporting on tax compliance in Moldova using the country's past experience during the Soviet era, when being reported to authorities was common and carried grave consequences.
Pass-mark bribery in Nigerian schools
Abstract:
Underinvestment and corruption in Nigeria’s education sector have created a context where providers of education services are presented with routine opportunities to demand and expect bribes from parents and other service users for their children’s passing grades. Data gathered in 2018, in the second household survey conducted by the Chatham House Africa Programme’s Social Norms and Accountable Governance (SNAG) project, reveals an important disparity between people’s personal disapproval of bribe-giving and their belief that others in their community support and approve of the practice. The briefing identifies opportunities to target petty bribery in schools, building on the insights offered by the survey evidence on social beliefs and expectations. Interventions might range from supporting greater parental participation in schools and developing accessible platforms for reporting bribe solicitation, to the delivery of targeted anti-corruption education to schoolchildren. However, the most sustainable solutions should address the myriad of systemic challenges in the Nigerian education sector that create strong incentives for routine corruption.
UNICEF-Mali: Normes sociales liées à Le mariage d’enfants
Abstract:
This report aims to analyze social norms related to child marriage and the eating habits of children under the age of 2 in the Sikasso and Kayes regions. The results of the study will enable UNICEF to better inform its Chapters and Mali to better understand the socio-cultural dynamics that hinder the change of gender in relation to child marriage, exclusive breastfeeding and complementary feeding.
UNICEF Pakistan: WASH Sustainability Check
Abstract:
This study focuses on Rural ODF Status (exclusive latrine use in ODF certified villages – behavioral sustainability) and continued functionality of RWSS (drinking water only) in the geographic region of two provinces in Pakistan, Sindh and Punjab. Our chief role was to develop, integrate and analyze social norms measures as part of the larger sustainability check. This report presents those methods, measures and findings.
The Role of Trendsetters in the Popularization and Adoption of the Swachh Bharat Mission
Abstract:
This UNICEF India report sheds light on whether (and to what degree) trendsetters were involved and may have influenced the social diffusion of Swachh Bharat Mission in India. Understanding who trendsetters are and how they can be motivated to act is an important step in building a comprehensive theory of social change. The present research is particularly important for India’s policy efforts post-ODF, as continuous support from stakeholders is necessary to sustain toilet use and maintenance.
Social Norms Manual: Zimbabwe and Swaziland
Abstract:
A Social Norms Manual produced for Zimbabwe and Swaziland as part of the UNICEF Office of Research’s Multi-Country Study on the Drivers of Violence Affecting Children. This manual serves as a guide to key concepts in the social norms framework with examples pertaining to the countries and programming areas.
Social Determinants of Open Defecation: Phase 1 Materials
Abstract:
In the first phase of our study of the social determinants of open defecation in India, we have produced a report detailing how social networks influence latrine ownership. We also explore demographic predictors of ownership and use and how our findings differ from existing literature. We explore how these network data link to norms data in our Phase 2 report.
Social Determinants of Open Defecation: Phase 2 Materials
Abstract:
In the second phase of our study of the social determinants of open defecation in India, we have produced a report detailing our diagnosis of a series of collective behaviors relevant to open defecation. We also describe patterns among our norms data to previously collected social network data. Furthermore, we track changes over time and other relevant patterns.
Nadar en Contra de la Corriente
Abstract:
2019 Spanish translated version of Bicchieri’s Norms in the Wild (2016). A partir de una rigurosa investigación, Cristina Bicchieri ofrece en estas páginas elementos para entender cómo se relacionan las acciones individuales con los comportamientos grupales, y comprueba con evidencias que es posible transformar una sociedad a través de la educación y mediante las actuaciones individuales.
Link:
https://revistas.flacsoandes.edu.ec/mundosplurales/article/view/4552
Shifting Social Norms to Mitigate Climate Change in the Anthropocene: A Review and Practical Guide
Abstract:
In this upcoming publication we synthesize the literature on social norm creation, change, and measurement from the perspectives of psychology, anthropology, sociology, and economics, and discuss opportunities and challenges for the application of social norm interventions to promote climate action. We argue that social norm interventions aimed at climate action and/or other social dilemmas are promising but no panacea. They require in-depth contextual knowledge and a high degree of tailoring and problem-specific pre-testing before they can be effectively implemented at scale. Our review tries to provide policy makers with the insights and tools to do so.
In Science we (should) trust: expectations and compliance during the Covid-19 pandemic
Abstract:
The magnitude and nature of the COVID-19 pandemic prevents public health policies from relying on coercive enforcement. Practicing social distancing, wearing masks and staying at home are voluntary and conditional on the behavior of others. We present the results of a large-scale survey experiment in nine countries with representative samples of the population. We find that both empirical expectations (what others do) and normative expectations (what others approve of) play a significant role in compliance, beyond the effect of any other individual or group characteristic. Our results are driven by an asymmetric interaction with individuals’ trust in government and science.
Collective Action on Corruption in Nigeria: A Social Norms Approach to Connecting Society and Institutions
Bibliography:
Hoffmann, L. K., & Patel, R. N. (2021, March 25). Collective action on corruption in Nigeria. Retrieved from https://www.chathamhouse.org/2021/03/collective-action-corruption-nigeria
Abstract:
This report aims to diagnose what drives corrupt behaviour in Nigeria, and the types of beliefs that support practices understood to be corrupt. Its findings are based largely on a national household survey jointly developed by the Chatham House Africa Programme and the University of Pennsylvania’s Social Norms Group (PennSONG), in collaboration with Nigeria’s National Bureau of Statistics as well as a network of academics and practitioners from Nigerian universities and NGOs. The findings present new evidence of the social beliefs and expectations that influence some day-today forms of corruption in Nigeria. Fuller details of the survey and associated research are given in the body of the report, as well as in the annex to the main text.
Sustaining Safe Sanitation and Hygiene Practices through Enhanced Behavior Change Communication Models
Abstract:
This report summarizes the pre-training preparatory field visit to Nambale and Nyando Districts that took place on November 29 and 30, and the training work done at the Morendat Training Centre in Naivasha from December 3 to December 6. The training revolved around Cristina Bicchieri’s account of social norms (cf. her The Grammar of Society, Cambridge University Press, 2005.) The main aim of the training was to show how the Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) approach to eradicate open defecation and Social Norm Theory (SNT) can be readily harmonized and how elements of CLTS can be better understood when looked at through the lens of SNT.
Women are more likely to expect social sanctions for open defecation: Evidence from Tamil Nadu India
Bibliography:
Kuang J, Ashraf S, Shpenev A, Delea MG, Das U, Bicchieri C (2020) Women are more likely to expect social sanctions for open defecation: Evidence from Tamil Nadu India. PLoS ONE 15(10): e0240477.
Why do so Few People Share Fake News? It Hurts Their Reputation
Bibliography:
Altay, S., Hacquin, A., & Mercier, H. (2019, October 1). Why do so Few People Share Fake News? It Hurts Their Reputation.
When a Nudge Backfires: Combining (Im)Plausible Deniability with Social and Economic Incentives to Promote Pro-Social Behavioral Change (with G. Bolton & U. Schmidt), under review.
Bibliography:
Bolton, Gary and Dimant, Eugen and Schmidt, Ulrich, When a Nudge Backfires: Combining (Im)Plausible Deniability with Social and Economic Incentives to Promote Pro-Social Behavioral Change (March 26, 2020).
Using Social Norms to Change Behavior and Increase Sustainability in the Real World: a Systematic Review of the Literature. Sustainability
Bibliography:
Yamin, P.; Fei, M.; Lahlou, S.; Levy, S. (2019). Using Social Norms to Change Behavior and Increase Sustainability in the Real World: a Systematic Review of the Literature. Sustainability, 11, 5847.
Under influence
Bibliography:
Frédérique de Vignemont, Hugo Mercier. Under influence. Hilary Kornblith and Brian McLaughlin. Alvin Goldman and his Critics, Blackwell, pp.00-00, 2013.
Trustworthiness is a social norm, but trusting is not.
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C., Xiao, E., & Muldoon, R. (2011). Philosophy, Politics and Economics, 10(2), 170-187. doi:10.1177/1470594X10387260
The challenge of innovation pilots
Bibliography:
Guillot, J., Christiansen, J., and Parra, J. (2019, March 6). The challenge of innovation pilots.
Social Norms Manual: Viet Nam, Indonesia and the Philippines
Abstract:
Drawing on several intellectual traditions and methods, including those of social psychology, experimental economics and evolutionary game theory, Bicchieri provides an integrated account of how social norms emerge, why and when we follow them, and the situations where we are most likely to focus on relevant norms.
Social Norms
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C. & Muldoon, R., (2011) The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Slipping on slippery slope arguments
Bibliography:
Fumagalli, R. (2020). Slipping on slippery slope arguments. Bioethics, 34(4), 412-419.
Shrieking sirens: Schemata, scripts, and social norms: How change occurs
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C., & McNally, P. (2018). Social Philosophy and Policy, 35(1), 23-53.
Sanitation practices during early phases of COVID-19 lockdown in peri-urban communities in Tamil Nadu, India
Bibliography:
Ashraf, S., Bicchieri, C., Das, U & Kuang, J. (2020, September 29). Sanitation practices during early phases of COVID-19 lockdown in peri-urban communities in Tamil Nadu, India.
Requiem for a Nudge: Framing Effects in Nudging Honesty
Bibliography:
Dimant, E., van Kleef, G. A., & Shalvi, S. (2020). Requiem for a nudge: Framing effects in nudging honesty. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 172, 247-266.
Perceptions of Autonomy, Inequality, and Fairness
Bibliography:
Aldama, A., Bicchieri, C., Freundt, J., Mellers, B., & Peters, E. (2020). Perceptions of Autonomy, Inequality, and Fairness. Inequality, and Fairness (March 19, 2020).
One person’s trash is another person’s treasure: In search of an efficient property regime for waste in the Global South
Bibliography:
Danese, G. (2021). One person’s trash is another person’s treasure: In search of an efficient property regime for waste in the Global South. Waste Management., 128, 251–260.
On the emergence of descriptive norms
Bibliography:
Muldoon, R., Lisciandra, C., Bicchieri, C., Hartmann, S., & Sprenger, J. (2014). Politics, Philosophy & Economics,13(1), 3-22. doi:10.1177/1470594X12447791
Observability, Social Proximity, and the Erosion of Norm Compliance (with C. Bicchieri, S. Gächter & D. Nosenzo), under review.
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, Cristina and Dimant, Eugen and Gachter, Simon and Nosenzo, Daniele, Observability, Social Proximity, and the Erosion of Norm Compliance (March 23, 2020).
Nudging with Care: The Risks and Benefits of Social Information
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C., & Dimant, E. (2019). Public Choice, forthcoming.
Norms, preferences and conditional behavior
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C. (2010). Politics, Philosophy and Economics, 9(3), 297-313. doi: 10.1177/1470594X10369276
Norms, conventions, and the power of expectation
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C. (2015). In N. Cartwright & E. Montuschi (Eds.), Philosophy of social science: A new introduction (pp. 208-232). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Norms in the Wild
Abstract:
Is it possible to change social expectations around forced marriage, genital mutilations, and public health practices like vaccinations and sanitation? If so, how? What tools might we use? This short book explores how social norms work, and how changing them – changing preferences, beliefs, and especially social expectations – can potentially improve lives all around the world.
Norms and Social Network–Centric Behavior Change Intervention (Nam Nalavazhvu) for Improved Toilet Usage in Peri-Urban Communities of Tamil Nadu: Protocol for a Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trial
Bibliography:
Ashraf, S., Bicchieri, C., Delea, M. G., Das, U., Chauhan, K., Kuang, J., … & Thulin, E. (2021). Norms and Social Network–Centric Behavior Change Intervention (Nam Nalavazhvu) for Improved Toilet Usage in Peri-Urban Communities of Tamil Nadu: Protocol for a Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trial. JMIR research protocols, 10(5), e24407.
Norms and beliefs: How change occurs
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C. & Mercier H. (2014). In M. Xenitidou & B. Edmonds (Eds.) The complexity of social norms (pp. 37-54). New York, NY: Springer International Publishing.
Norm manipulation, norm evasion: experimental evidence
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C., & Chavez, A. K. (2013). Economics and Philosophy, 29(02), 175-198.
Norm Change: Trendsetters and Social Structure
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C & Funcke, A. (2018). Social Research: An International Quarterly, 85(1), 1-21.
Local determinants of driving behaviours: Installation Theory interventions to reduce fuel consumption among truck drivers in Colombia
Bibliography:
Yamin, P., Lahlou, S., Ortega, S., & Skrickij, V. (2021). Local determinants of driving behaviours: Installation Theory interventions to reduce fuel consumption among truck drivers in Colombia. Transport, 35(6), 616-634.
Justification and conformity
Bibliography:
Erte Xiao (2017) “Justification and Conformity”. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organisation, 136, 15-28.
It’s Not A Lie If You Believe It: Lying and Belief Distortion Under Norm-Uncertainty
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C., Dimant, E., & Sonderegger, S. (forthcoming).
Isolating the effect of injunctive norms on conservation behavior: New evidence from a field experiment in California
Bibliography:
Bhanot, S. P. (2018). Isolating the effect of injunctive norms on conservation behavior: New evidence from a field experiment in California. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes.
Is participation contagious? Evidence from a household vector control campaign in urban Peru.
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C. & Buttenheim, A. (2013). Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 68, 103-109.
Human Punishment Behavior
Bibliography:
Erte Xiao (2019) “Human Punishment Behavior”. Oxford Research Encyclopedia, Economics and Finance. Oxford University Press USA.
How Trendsetters Shaped India’s Massive Sanitation Campaign
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C., McNally, P., Ghai, S., & Patel, R. (2019, September 20). How Trendsetters Shaped India’s Massive Sanitation Campaign.
Grammar of Society
Abstract:
Drawing on several intellectual traditions and methods, including those of social psychology, experimental economics and evolutionary game theory, Bicchieri provides an integrated account of how social norms emerge, why and when we follow them, and the situations where we are most likely to focus on relevant norms.
Good for You or Good for Us?: A Field Experiment on Motivating Citizen Behavior Change.
Bibliography:
Bhanot, S.P. Good for You or Good for Us?: A Field Experiment on Motivating Citizen Behavior Change. Journal of Behavioral Public Administration. (Forthcoming).
Game-Theoretic Accounts of Social Norms: The Role of Normative Expectations
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C., & Sontuoso, A. (2017). In R. Croson, M. Capra, M. I. Rigdon, & T. Rosenblat (Eds)., Handbook of Experimental Game Theory. Edward Elgar Publishing.
Framing messages for vaccination supporters
Bibliography:
Altay, S., & Mercier, H. (2020). Framing messages for vaccination supporters. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied, 26(4), 567–578.
Ethical challenges of using video for qualitative research and ethnography
Bibliography:
Everri, M., Heitmayer, M., Yamin, P., Lahlou, S. (2020). Ethical challenges of using video for qualitative research and ethnography. In: Lähdesmäki, Tuuli, Koskinen-Koivisto, Eerika, Čeginskas, Viktorija L.A. and Koistinen, Aino-Kaisa, (eds.) Challenges and Solutions in Ethnographic Research: Ethnography with a Twist. Routledge, Abingdon, Oxon, pp. 68-83. ISBN 9780367376888.
Do the right thing: but only if others do so.
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C. & Xiao, E. (2009). Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, 22(2), 191-208.
Do descriptive norms messaging interventions backfire? Protocol for a systematic review of the boomerang effect
Bibliography:
Kuang, Jinyi & Delea, Maryann & Thulin, Erik & Bicchieri, Cristina. (2020). Do descriptive norms messaging interventions backfire? Protocol for a systematic review of the boomerang effect. 10.21203/rs.3.rs-18161/v1.
Deviant or Wrong? The Effects of Norm Information on the Efficacy of Punishment
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C., Dimant, E., & Xiao, E. (2021). Deviant or wrong? The effects of norm information on the efficacy of punishment. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 188, 209-235.
COVID-19 in India: Immense Role for HealthCare Field Workers
Bibliography:
Ashraf, S. (2020, April 1).
COVID-19 and Toilet-use in India: Why Continued Attention is Needed?
Bibliography:
Ashraf, S. (2020, April 27).
Contagion of Pro- and Anti-Social Behavior Among Peers and the Role of Social Proximity
Bibliography:
Dimant, E. (2019). Contagion of pro-and anti-social behavior among peers and the role of social proximity. Journal of Economic Psychology, 73, 66-88.
Can trust facilitate bribery? Experimental evidence from China, Italy, Japan and the Netherlands
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C., Willem, J.W., & Jiang, T. (2015). Social Cognition, 5, 484-504.
Bias in the perceived prevalence of open defecation: Evidence from Bihar, India
Bibliography:
Kuang J, Thulin E, Ashraf S, Shpenev A, Das U, Delea MG, et al. (2020) Bias in the perceived prevalence of open defecation: Evidence from Bihar, India. PLoS ONE 15(9): e0238627.
Behavioural Insights in Consultation Design: A Dialogical Architecture
Bibliography:
Cafaggi, F., & Sillari, G. (2018). Behavioural Insights in Consultation Design: A Dialogical Architecture. European Journal of Risk Regulation, 9(4), 603-631.
Behaving as expected: Public information and fairness norms.
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C. & Chavez, A. (2010).Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, 23(2), 161-178.
Bad luck or bad intentions: When do third parties reveal offenders’ intentions to victims?
Bibliography:
Hart, E., Mellers, B. A., & Bicchieri, C. (2019). Journal of Experimental Social Psychology.
Awareness, risk perception, and stress during the COVID-19 pandemic in communities of Tamil Nadu, India.
Bibliography:
Kuang J, Ashraf S, Das U, Bicchieri C. Awareness, Risk Perception, and Stress during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Communities of Tamil Nadu, India. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2020; 17(19):7177. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17197177
Applying Social Norms Theory in CATS Programming
Abstract:
The primary goal of this document is to provide the necessary information on the importance, nature and application of the theory of social norms to sanitation specialists. This document distills insights from joint collaborations with UNICEF, and aims to promote positive social change with regard to many harmful collective patterns of behavior related to sanitation.
An Embarrassment of Riches: Modeling Social Preferences in Ultimatum Games
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C., & Zhang, J. (2012). In U. Maki (Ed.), Handbook of the Philosophy of Science: Philosophy of Economics. Elsevier.
A Theory of Social Programs, Legitimacy and Citizen Cooperation with the State
Bibliography:
Navarrete, A. S. A. (2019). A Theory of Social Programs, Legitimacy and Citizen Cooperation with the State.
Abstract:
Aid and social programs are commonly used to fight insurgencies and crime. However, sometimes they fail to achieve their goal of increasing citizen cooperation with the state. I propose a series of game-theoretic models that focus on the strategic interaction between a state and a citizen in the face of challenges to the state’s monopoly of power. I argue that even if the provision of aid or social programs increases citizens’ intrinsic motivation to cooperate with the state, they do not necessarily translate into more cooperation. I show that citizen cooperation depends on the whether the increase in the provision of aid is accompanied by an increase in the use of violent or hard tools by the state, the citizens’ expectation of future rewards, and the challenger’s response. The models thus provide a rationale for why even if social programs increase state legitimacy, they may fail to increase citizen cooperation.
A structured approach to a diagnostic of collective practices.
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C., Lindemans, J.W., & Jiang, T. (2014). Frontiers in Psychology, 5, 1418.
A social norms perspective on child marriage
Bibliography:
Bicchieri, C., Lindemans, J.W., & Jiang, T. (2014). UNICEF.
(F)utility Exposed
Bibliography:
Fumagalli, R. (2019). (F) utility Exposed. Philosophy of Science, 86(5), 955-966.