Norms and their violation: Literature review

Abstract

The aim of the article is to analyse classical and modern social psychological studies of norms and their violation. The relevance of this analysis is justified by the fact that the situation of interaction in the Internet space (it is the dominant form of our daily life at various levels, mainly among the young people) is characterized to a large extent by uncertainty. An attempt to understand how people react to this uncertainty, developing a common frame of reference for interpreting what is acceptable and expected, and what is not, directs our attention towards Sherif’s classical studies on group norms formation. On the other hand, the discussion on the classical and modern research lines of norms violation is proposed. The special attention is paid to the alternative research line of group norms violation. The perspective for further research of norms and their violation are outlined.