Only kids who are fools would do that!: Peer social norms influence children's risk-taking decisions

Abstract

Objectives The current research examined the impact of peer social norms on the physical risk-taking decisions of elementary-school children. Method Children 6-12 years of age completed a novel video-viewing decision task in which they observed risk and non-risk child behaviors on a playground and, after each behavior, indicated their willingness to model each of the behaviors in their own video, both before and after exposure to peer-communicated social norms (encouragement, discouragement). Results Exposure to peer social norms resulted in significant changes in risk taking, with changes predicted from ratings of perceived social norms and appraisals of injury vulnerability and severity. Conclusion Exposure to peer social norms can provide another means by which injury prevention programs can aim to reduce injury-risk behaviors among school-age children. © 2013 The Author.