The Normative Dimensions of SBC as Part of a Community Action Cycle JOSEPH PETRAGLIA

1. WARMING UP TO NORMS
How would you raise the subject of domestic
violence when speaking with:
1) A group of close friends?
2) A group of professional colleagues?
3) A group of family members?
In speaking with these different groups, what
would be considered “acceptable” and
expected or “unacceptable” and unexpected in
terms of behavior, language, etc.? Why?

2. Are there implications of what you have
discussed that we should try to
incorporate into our public health work?

3. The Normative Dimensions
of SBC as Part of a
Community Action Approach
Joseph Petraglia
Senior Advisor for Behavior Change

4. In light of our warm-up exercise,
how do move from the
commonplace recognition that
norms are embedded in social
expectations to the task of either
supporting or modifying those
expectations?

5. SIMPLY PUT…
Theories of normative change suggest that
when we perceive that the majority of people
we consider our peers (i.e., a “norm-reference
group”) subscribes to particular attitudes and
behaviors, we are more likely to conform to
those attitudes and behaviors ourselves.

6. SOME FINDINGS ON NORMATIVE IMPACT COMMONLY
UPHELD BY RESEARCH STUDIES
• Health behaviors considered by public health professionals
to be risky or harmful are often performed by individuals
who believe that their peers support such behaviors.
• People who believe that peers are likely to endorse risky
health behaviors are more likely demonstrate such behaviors
themselves. (causal link)
• People are more likely not to interfere in others’ behaviors
and stigmatizing attitudes (i.e., act as bystanders) if they
believe those behaviors and attitudes are generally
supported by the broader norm-reference group.

7. INTERVENTIONS DESIGNED TO ENCOURAGE
REFLECTION ON, AND PERHAPS MODIFY, NORMS CAN
BE DELIVERED AT DIFFERENT LEVELS.
• Universal (population/community-wide)
• Selective (small group or sub-population)
• Indicative (individually in a more clinical
setting)*
* Alan Berkowitz, (1997). From Reactive to Proactive Prevention

8. In public health, we frequently address normative
change at the universal (community) level or the
selective (small group/sub-community level).
In both cases, we often take a “community action”
approach. Such approaches typically use
participative small group activities to encourage
reflection on behavior (and the norms that support
those behaviors) and, subsequently, identify group
actions that can support and extend healthy norms
and behaviors or modify norms and behaviors that
may be seen as risky.

9. Our panelists today will look at different
aspects of community action interventions
to examine more closely how we can
support and advance health-affirming
norms, attitudes and behaviors.

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THANK YOU
jpetraglia@pathfinder.org