The Emergence and Development of Dynamic Norms in Environmental Communication: A Bibliometric Analysis

Dynamic norms, which communicate information about behavioral change over time, have gained increasing attention in environmental communication research. Compared with static norms, which reflect typical or accepted behaviors at a specific moment, dynamic norms introduce a temporal tendency to promote behavioral change, even when the target behavior is not yet prevalent. Recent research has empirically investigated the influence of dynamic norms on behavioral change, providing evidence of their effectiveness. However, as an emerging concept, the theoretical exploration of dynamic norms remains limited. To elucidate the theoretical evolution and practical application of this concept, we conducted a bibliometric analysis of 1,573 articles related to dynamic norms. Our analysis highlights the theoretical foundations, developmental pathways, and applications of dynamic norms, offering a comprehensive overview of this burgeoning area of research.