Human-Centered Design (HCD) has created quite a buzz in the business community. A common occurrence in design and management, this strategy approaches problem-solving through a human perspective by leveraging empathy towards the users by carefully studying their needs, behaviors, wants, constraints, and contexts. While the efficiency of HCD is evident in its widespread success in the corporate world, its real potential lies in the realm of the social sector.
A key factor in the success of any development or welfare intervention is its effectiveness in bringing about collective action in the target locality. As researchers experiment with many strategies to drive the community towards the desired collective behavior, a recurring observation has been the unique efficacy of weaving the intervention efforts into the pre-existing social norms - the belief structures regarding appropriate behaviors - within the particular group.
In Maharashtra, we encounter two villages - Ralegan Siddhi and Hiware Bazar - which stand as role models for development through collective action, transforming from acute food and water shortage to achieving sustainable development and water surplus.
Mr. Anna Hazare leveraged the people’s religious sentiments by inviting voluntary donations of labor to reconstruct the village temple of Ralegan Siddhi. This proved to be a pivotal move in laying down the foundation for collective action and team-building amongst the religious locals. This model of voluntary labor was later used for other development endeavors such as constructing Nala bunds to allow percolation of water, renovation of an old percolation tank, and adopting social fencing to avoid overgrazing in an effort to curb soil erosion. The religious and cultural homogeneity of its locals aided Ralegan Siddhi in utilizing social norms to bring discipline and development to the community. Although the rigidity of some rules rooted deeply in religious principles is questionable, the success of Ralegan Siddhi remains a notable example in the literature on rural development.
Later, in Hiware Bazar, Mr. Popatrao Pawar took this approach a step ahead by taking up reconstruction of the Hindu temple as well as a Buddhist shrine and a Muslim mosque, regardless of the minority of these individuals in the population of the village. The unity and brotherhood gained thus allowed Mr. Pawar to gain support for practices such as fully organic farming and water auditing, one of their water management strategies used to preplan the cropping pattern to be followed according to the rainfall received. Previously a poverty-ridden region, Hiware Bazar is now experiencing massive reverse migration from cities like Mumbai, Pune, and Thane, as it has become one of the most prosperous villages in India.
As the benefits of incorporating social norms into interventions are becoming increasingly evident, many experiments to modify the existing social norms or create new ones to achieve the desired behavior are being undertaken.
One such experiment is a pilot study conducted by the Mind, Behavior, and Development Unit of the World Bank in rural Uttar Pradesh that successfully reduced open defecation in favor of latrine use by shifting social norms and mental models of the locals. They utilized low-cost measures such as simple social messaging and tapping into influential individuals in the village-level social networks, coined as “norm entrepreneurs.” The researchers realized that while community-level delivery methods were more effective in changing social norms, individual delivery methods proved more influential to bring about a change in personal beliefs.
Another effort in social norms modeling comes from Rare, a behavior change and conservation organization, has developed the Lands for Life program to be implemented in Columbia, which is focused on changing social norms around farming using social proof and social pressure. Farmers are more willing to adopt a practice if they observe its success amongst their peers (i.e. social proof) or if they believe that such practices are expected of them (i.e. social pressure). This learning led to creating a staggered program for the adoption of sustainable farming, starting with targeting a few willing farmers - coined as “innovators” - and using their success as social proof for the curious others. As the number of innovators grows, their prevalence in the community and other social messaging to promote the benefits of organic farming would create the expectation that all farmers cultivate sustainably and thus bring in social pressure for those still reluctant on adoption. Although the program is still underway, previously unassociated farmers are already approaching the team to be a part of the movement.
Compliance is more readily obtained whenever social interventions capitalize upon mental models and informal rules of the community. However, this should not be confused with the stickiness of socially desirable behavior. Even members of long-reigning model communities like Ralegan Siddhi and Hiware Bazar, mentioned previously, revert to self-interested behaviour once taken out of context. Therefore, social norms are external conditions made up of behaviors and expectations that one adheres to and not necessarily intrinsic individual inclinations.
Hence, while the research on social norms is promising, it is important to not get carried away. Like any other behavioral science tool, social norm modeling should not be used in isolation, but as a booster to the more traditional techniques.
Pranjal Tipnis
