Filed under...
Community Norms

Norms shape the level of acceptance of alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use within a community. This level of community acceptance is translated into individual use of the substance through the collective desire to conform to social and group norms. Norms can vary across different social groups and may reflect differing levels of acceptable substance use between social groups. Public policies, laws, and regulations are based on norms and ultimately affect the availability and promotion of substances within a community. In this way, the availability, promotion, and norms surrounding substance use all interact to determine the level of use and associated problems within a community. Active coalition building is one example of an environmental prevention strategy that focuses on changing community norms around the use of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs. For example, a key component of Communities Mobilizing for Change on Alcohol (CMCA), a community-organizing program designed to reduce teens’ access to alcohol, is to communicate a clear message to the community that underage drinking is inappropriate and unacceptable. While it remains difficult to accurately measure community norms surrounding substance use, more research is necessary to determine the link between community norms and substance use.