“You should (not) do that”: An Evaluative Model of Normative Appeals (EMNA)

ABSTRACT

Normative appeals refer to those messages that indicate that one should (or should not) engage in a certain action in a given situation. According to the psychosocial research, the decision to fulfill a normative appeal depends on both the extent to which it has captured our attention and the evaluation of what we may gain or lose by doing so. However, according to the Evaluative Model of Normative Appeals (EMNA), between these two processes we carry out an evaluation (normative appraisal) that strongly influences the decision that is ultimately made. Specifically, this normative appraisal, which is done in accordance with the dimensions of formality and protection, transforms the appeal into a particular normative representation (i.e., custom, coercive law, prescription, or legitimate law) that, in turn, influences the willingness toward compliance or violation. The results of three studies support these basic premises of EMNA.

KEYWORDS:

• Compliance
• formality
• normative appeal
• normative appraisal
• protection

Acknowledgments

We are grateful to Pilar Carrera and Eric Stocks for their helpful comments on an earlier draft, to Vanesa Duro for data collection in Study 3, and to David Weston, Susana Sariego, and the Linguistic Consulting Office at UAM for their assistance with the preparation of the English version.

Funding

This research has received financial support from a Spanish Education Ministry grant (PSI2014-53321-P) and the Programa CONICYT, FONDECYT Iniciación 11130710 (Chile).

Notes

1. In addition to those four situations that involved violating a law (legitimate or coercive), the questionnaire inserted four more situations that corresponded to normative appeals usually perceived as prescriptions (i.e., donate blood, stop buying products that are bad for the environment) and customs (i.e., greet someone in the street by yelling, and answer your mobile phone in a public place). We did not include the analysis of referred to these situations because, first, we focused on the decision of illegal violation, and, second, its description will dilute the narrative and increase the length. In any case, the additional analyses presented on OFS Web site (Oceja & Salgado, 2015; osf.io/2wjgn) show that the pattern of results is virtually identical to that described in the present work and, moreover, robustly consistent with the premises derived from EMNA.

Additional information

Funding

This research has received financial support from a Spanish Education Ministry grant (PSI2014-53321-P) and the Programa CONICYT, FONDECYT Iniciación 11130710 (Chile).

Notes on contributors

Luis Oceja

Luis Oceja is affiliated with the Department of Social Psychology, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. Marisol Villegas is affiliated with the Centro de Estudios del Desarrollo, Universidad Central de Venezuela. Maite Beramendi is affiliated with the Universidad de Buenos Aires-CONICET. Sergio Salgado is affiliated with the Departamento de Administración y Economía, Universidad de La Frontera.

Marisol Villegas

Luis Oceja is affiliated with the Department of Social Psychology, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. Marisol Villegas is affiliated with the Centro de Estudios del Desarrollo, Universidad Central de Venezuela. Maite Beramendi is affiliated with the Universidad de Buenos Aires-CONICET. Sergio Salgado is affiliated with the Departamento de Administración y Economía, Universidad de La Frontera.

Maite Beramendi

Luis Oceja is affiliated with the Department of Social Psychology, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. Marisol Villegas is affiliated with the Centro de Estudios del Desarrollo, Universidad Central de Venezuela. Maite Beramendi is affiliated with the Universidad de Buenos Aires-CONICET. Sergio Salgado is affiliated with the Departamento de Administración y Economía, Universidad de La Frontera.

Sergio Salgado

Luis Oceja is affiliated with the Department of Social Psychology, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. Marisol Villegas is affiliated with the Centro de Estudios del Desarrollo, Universidad Central de Venezuela. Maite Beramendi is affiliated with the Universidad de Buenos Aires-CONICET. Sergio Salgado is affiliated with the Departamento de Administración y Economía, Universidad de La Frontera.