Peering Into the Magnum Mysterium of Culture The Explanatory Power of Descriptive Norms

The purpose of this research is to test whether descriptive norms, or cognitions about typical beliefs, values, and behaviors of one's group, can explain cultural influence in the domains of blame attribution and harm perception. In Study 1, using participants from the United States and South Korea, the authors find that individuals with lower (vs. higher) collectivistic descriptive norms ascribed more blame after more intentional acts and less blame after less intentional acts. In the second study, using American and South Korean participants, the authors find that individuals with lower (vs. higher) collectivistic descriptive norms perceived more harm after right violations and less harm after duty violations. Collectivistic personal attitudes did not predict the expected differences in attribution of blame or perception of harm. The descriptive norm account of cultural influence provides an alternative to the currently dominant personal attitude paradigm.