Human and nonhuman norms: a dimensional framework

Area of Science:

• Comparative psychology
• Social norms research
• Animal social behavior

Background:

• Social norms are fundamental to human communities, but their origins are often assumed to be uniquely human.
• Understanding the psychological underpinnings of social norms is key to changing harmful ones.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the origins of social norms from a comparative perspective, including nonhuman animals.
• To identify psychological mechanisms underlying social norms that may be shared across species.
• To overcome theoretical obstacles in developing a comparative science of social norms.

Main Methods:

• Leveraging recent research on animal social behavior.
• Developing a six-dimensional model of psychological and social factors influencing norms.
• Analyzing theoretical obstacles to comparative norm research.

Main Results:

• Suggestive evidence indicates potential for social norms in nonhuman communities.
• Human social norms likely involve a broad spectrum of mechanisms, many shared with animals.
• A comparative perspective can broaden hypotheses for studying human social norms.

Conclusions:

• A comparative approach is valuable for understanding the variability and origins of social norms.
• Shared psychological mechanisms may contribute to social norms in both humans and animals.
• Further research integrating animal behavior can advance the science of social norms.