A COMMON FRAMEWORK FOR THEORIES OF NORM COMPLIANCE. Issue 1 (4th December 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Morris, Adam; Cushman, Fiery
• Is Part Of: Social philosophy and policy. Volume 35:Issue 1(2018)
• Page Start: 101
• Page End: 127
• Publication Date: 2018-12-04
• Subjects: norms, -- reinforcement learning, -- compliance, -- cognitive psychology, -- value, -- decision-making; Social policy -- Periodicals; Social sciences -- Philosophy -- Periodicals; 303.01
• DOI: 10.1017/S0265052518000134
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0265-0525

Abstract

Abstract: Humans often comply with social norms, but the reasons why are disputed. Here, we unify a variety of influential explanations in a common decision framework, and identify the precise cognitive variables that norms might alter to induce compliance. Specifically, we situate current theories of norm compliance within the reinforcement learning framework, which is widely used to study value-guided learning and decision-making. This framework offers an appealingly precise language to distinguish between theories, highlights the various points of convergence and divergence, and suggests novel ways in which norms might penetrate our psychology.