Normative Compliance: Universal or Culturally Shaped? - Exploring the Impact of Cultural Orientations on Normative Compliance in Health and Environmental Contexts

Social norms are deeply embedded in cultures and strongly shaped by cultural orientations. Although this notion is widely recognized and accepted, however, research conducted to theorize and identify specific cultural orientations that have strong influence on normative compliance is limited, and studies on how cultural orientations affects compliance with social norms in different cultures remain unsystematic. This study reports a cross-sectional survey with a total sample of 1,849 participants recruited from the U.S. (n = 601), mainland China (n = 600), and Hong Kong (n = 648) to test the interplay between descriptive norms, three cultural orientations (i.e., individualism/collectivism, cultural tightness/looseness, and uncertainty avoidance), and country of origin on behavioral intention to mitigate health and environmental risks. The results indicate that individualism/collectivism and cultural tightness/looseness moderate the relationship between descriptive norms and behavioral intention. However, the results also revealed considerable variations in countries of origin. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.