Since 1994, Jon Sundt has led as chief visionary officer of his self-founded company, Natural High. Jon Sundt developed Natural High based on a number of teen behavior theories, including Perkins and Berkowitz's Social Norms Theory.
Originally developed as a way of understanding and counteracting student alcohol use, social norms theory explains the influence of environment and interpersonal relations in determining adolescent behavior. It focuses primarily on peer influence, a particularly salient influencer of teen behavior. According to the theory, the influence of peers on an adolescent's choices and actions stems more from the perceived norms of the social group than on actual norms.
The difference between perceived and actual norms, known as a misperception, forms the basis of social norms theory. Due to a widespread tendency to overestimate their peers' engagement in risky behaviors, adolescents may change their own behavior to align with what they perceive as the norm. Conversely, correction of this misperception may in turn decrease the likelihood of the behavior within the group.
This paradigm has led to development of interventions that reveal the true norm of the group, which is often healthier than the perceived norm. In these interventions, social media and other teen-focused modalities communicate the actual norm in a way that teens can believe, internalize, and ultimately act upon.
Originally developed as a way of understanding and counteracting student alcohol use, social norms theory explains the influence of environment and interpersonal relations in determining adolescent behavior. It focuses primarily on peer influence, a particularly salient influencer of teen behavior. According to the theory, the influence of peers on an adolescent's choices and actions stems more from the perceived norms of the social group than on actual norms.
The difference between perceived and actual norms, known as a misperception, forms the basis of social norms theory. Due to a widespread tendency to overestimate their peers' engagement in risky behaviors, adolescents may change their own behavior to align with what they perceive as the norm. Conversely, correction of this misperception may in turn decrease the likelihood of the behavior within the group.
This paradigm has led to development of interventions that reveal the true norm of the group, which is often healthier than the perceived norm. In these interventions, social media and other teen-focused modalities communicate the actual norm in a way that teens can believe, internalize, and ultimately act upon.
