Module 7: Social Norms and Social Influence on Behaviour

This module examines how social expectations, group standards and significant individuals influence behavioural decisions. Human behaviour does not occur in isolation, and people frequently consider what others expect them to do, what others actually do and how their actions may affect their acceptance within a group. Participants study perceived social norms, subjective norms, injunctive norms, descriptive norms, normative beliefs and important reference groups. The module also explores processes such as compliance, identification, internalisation, conformity and social pressure. Particular attention is given to the role of supervisors, colleagues, family members, professional groups and organisational cultures in shaping behaviour. In Malaysian and wider Asian workplace contexts, where hierarchy, collective expectations and relationship-based influence can be particularly important, understanding normative pressures is highly relevant to organisational practice. Participants learn to conduct a normative influence analysis by identifying the individuals or groups whose expectations matter, assessing the strength of their influence and determining whether prevailing norms support or obstruct the desired behaviour. This allows practitioners to design interventions that address social influence rather than focusing only on individual attitudes.