The Social Norms Project: The Way Things Really Are

Are the two heavy lines straight?

Answer:
Our perception of an object can be distorted by the context in which it is seen. Here, the center lines are perfectly straight, though they appear to bulge out in the middle.

The Social Norms Project: It’s Time to See Things the Way They Really Are
By now you have probably seen posters stating that most students at your school do not typically drink alcohol, do not pressure friends to drink, and do not drink and drive. What are these posters all about?

A number of high schools in St. Louis — Chaminade, Chesterfield Day, John Burroughs, MICDS, Nerinx, Priory, Thomas Jefferson, Villa, Visitation and Westminster — are collaborating in the use what is called the social norms approach to promote the fact that most of their students do the right thing when it comes to alcohol. The goal of the project is to reduce alcohol-related risks and to decrease alcohol use by students.

What is the Social Norms Approach?
The social norms approach is an innovative, evidence-based method of health promotion and risk-reduction. It was first used in a number of colleges and universities across the country — such as the University of Virginia, the University of Arizona, Michigan State University, the University of Missouri, and Northern Illinois University — to reduce alcohol abuse among students. It has now also been used successfully in high schools and communities to address smoking, adolescent alcohol use, seat-belt use, and other issues. The social norms project at your school focuses solely on alcohol.

As employed in this project, the social norms approach is based on four fundamental points:

• A person’s perceptions of group expectations and peer conduct (i.e., social norms) strongly influence that person’s behavior.
• Misperceptions about student alcohol use are common: as a group, students, parents, and teachers all overestimate student alcohol use and underestimate both student and parent protective practices.
• This overestimation of alcohol use creates imaginary peer pressure to drink, i.e., a tolerance and even an expectation to drink. It also causes students to suppress or hide their norm of healthy behavior (e.g., “No thanks, I don’t drink…”)
• Providing frequent exposure to credible, data-based information that highlights the fact that most students do not drink and that describes students’ healthy, protective practices will gradually reduce misperceptions, reduce drinking, and reduce risk.

What the Surveys Told Us
In spring 2005 and 2006, students, parents and teachers at the participating schools were surveyed anonymously. The data from the surveys revealed patterns of use and overestimation of peer use that are similar to those found in high schools throughout the country.

1.  Most students are not drinkers
The data clearly indicate that most students are not drinkers:

• Well over 4 out of 5 do not typically drink alcohol when socializing with friends
• The vast majority do not drive after drinking (based only on those who drive)
• Most do not identify themselves as drinkers
• The majority did not drink in the last 30 days

2. Alcohol-related harm is rare
It should come as no surprise, then, that serious consequences related to alcohol use are relatively rare for students.

The overwhelming majority…

• …have experienced no interference with school because of alcohol
• …have not had trouble with police because of alcohol
• …have not injured others due to alcohol
• …have not themselves experienced an injury due to alcohol

3. Misperceptions are widespread
The data clearly indicate that students overestimate the level of peer drinking:

• On a variety of measures, students clearly overestimate the extent to which their peers drink, think it appropriate for high school students to drink, and drive after having consumed alcohol. In each instance, the perception of peer behavior is at least twice what it is in reality.

The data reveal that parents and teachers also overestimate student drinking.

How will students, parents, and teachers be informed?
A variety of methods including posters, direct mail, flyers, and special events will be used to highlight and deliver information about the way things really are. As previously noted, research shows that providing frequent exposure to this kind of credible, data-based information can gradually reduce misperceptions, reduce drinking, and reduce risk.

Where can you get more information?
More information about social norms theory, case studies, and research, is available on the website of the National Social Norm Resource Center (www.socialnorm.org), which is helping your school with the Social Norms Project.  You can also visit www.independentschools.org for specific information on the St. Louis Project.

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