--- title: "A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effectiveness of social norms messaging approaches for improving health behaviours in developed countries." url: "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/studien/10-1089-cyber-2012-0080/" type: "study" language: de-DE description: "Social norms approaches have been widely applied in health promotion as a cost-effective behaviour-change strategy, but have been little evaluated as a whole. We conducted a pre-registered systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials using social norms messaging in developed countries targeted at changing health behaviours among 16+-year-olds to evaluate their effectiveness. Relevant studies were identified through searches in PsycINFO, Medline, Embase, Web of Science, TRIP, Cochrane and grey literature sources. Risk of bias was assessed independently by two reviewers using the Cochrane RoB 2 tool. A random-effects meta-analysis standardized effect sizes to Cohen's d, assessed heterogeneity with I² and applied robust Bayesian meta-analysis to adjust for publication bias. Searches resulted in 89 studies (n = 85,759), which exhibited a small effect of social norms messaging on health behaviours (Cohen's d = 0.1, 95% confidence interval (CI) [0.09, 0.19], P < 0.001). However, this effect disappeared after controlling for publication bias. We conducted moderator analyses, finding no significant differences from the overall effect for different types of social norms message, delivery modalities, health domains or target populations. The review is limited by the lack of studies assessing whether normative information changed participant perceptions, inconsistent use of manipulation checks, and high heterogeneity across studies in terms of target behaviour, population and intervention delivery, affecting the robustness of conclusions. Our analysis suggests that when appropriately controlling for publication bias, social norms messages are not effective at improving health behaviours. Thus, future attempts at improving public health should focus on alternative approaches." --- # A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effectiveness of social norms messaging approaches for improving health behaviours in developed countries. > A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effectiveness of social norms messaging approaches for improving health behaviours in developed countries.: Social norms approaches have been widely applied in health promotion as a cost-effective behaviour-change strategy, but have been little evaluated as a whole. We conducted a pre-registered systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials using social norms messaging in developed countries targeted at changing health behaviours among 16+-year-olds to evaluate their effectiveness. Relevant studies were identified through searches in PsycINFO, Medline, Embase, Web of Science, TRIP, Cochrane and grey literature sources. Risk of bias was assessed independently by two reviewers using the Cochrane RoB 2 tool. A random-effects meta-analysis standardized effect sizes to Cohen's d, assessed heterogeneity with I² and applied robust Bayesian meta-analysis to adjust for publication bias. Searches resulted in 89 studies (n = 85,759), which exhibited a small effect of social norms messaging on health behaviours (Cohen's d = 0.1, 95% confidence interval (CI) [0.09, 0.19], P < 0.001). However, this effect disappeared after controlling for publication bias. We conducted moderator analyses, finding no significant differences from the overall effect for different types of social norms message, delivery modalities, health domains or target populations. The review is limited by the lack of studies assessing whether normative information changed participant perceptions, inconsistent use of manipulation checks, and high heterogeneity across studies in terms of target behaviour, population and intervention delivery, affecting the robustness of conclusions. Our analysis suggests that when appropriately controlling for publication bias, social norms messages are not effective at improving health behaviours. Thus, future attempts at improving public health should focus on alternative approaches. Evidenzgrad A, Risk of Bias unclear. ## Quelle Autor:innen: Trisevgeni Papakonstantinou, Sarah Lynn Flecke, C E R Edmunds, Rosina Cross, Anh Tran, Natalie Gold Jahr: 2025 Journal/Quelle: Nature human behaviour DOI: 10.1089/cyber.2012.0080 APA: Papakonstantinou, T., Flecke, S. L., Edmunds, C. E. R., Cross, R., Tran, A., & Gold, N. (2025). A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effectiveness of social norms messaging approaches for improving health behaviours in developed countries. Nature human behaviour. https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2012.0080 ## Forschungsfrage / Summary Social norms approaches have been widely applied in health promotion as a cost-effective behaviour-change strategy, but have been little evaluated as a whole. We conducted a pre-registered systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials using social norms messaging in developed countries targeted at changing health behaviours among 16+-year-olds to evaluate their effectiveness. Relevant studies were identified through searches in PsycINFO, Medline, Embase, Web of Science, TRIP, Cochrane and grey literature sources. Risk of bias was assessed independently by two reviewers using the Cochrane RoB 2 tool. A random-effects meta-analysis standardized effect sizes to Cohen's d, assessed heterogeneity with I² and applied robust Bayesian meta-analysis to adjust for publication bias. Searches resulted in 89 studies (n = 85,759), which exhibited a small effect of social norms messaging on health behaviours (Cohen's d = 0.1, 95% confidence interval (CI) [0.09, 0.19], P < 0.001). However, this effect disappeared after controlling for publication bias. We conducted moderator analyses, finding no significant differences from the overall effect for different types of social norms message, delivery modalities, health domains or target populations. The review is limited by the lack of studies assessing whether normative information changed participant perceptions, inconsistent use of manipulation checks, and high heterogeneity across studies in terms of target behaviour, population and intervention delivery, affecting the robustness of conclusions. Our analysis suggests that when appropriately controlling for publication bias, social norms messages are not effective at improving health behaviours. Thus, future attempts at improving public health should focus on alternative approaches. ## Methode und Evidenzqualität [Studien](/studien/)typ: Studie Risk of Bias: unclear Evidenzgrad: A ## Key Findings Evidence-Fill Queue: Findings werden aus Volltext, Abstract und Review-Notizen konsolidiert. ## Effektgrößen / Outcomes Evidence-Fill Queue: Effektgrößen und Outcomes werden aus Volltext-Extraktionen priorisiert. ## Conversion-Implikationen Evidence-Fill Queue: Conversion-Implikationen werden nur ausgespielt, wenn Mechanismus, Kontext und Messgröße ableitbar sind. ## Limitationen Evidence-Fill Queue: Limitationen werden aus Risk-of-Bias-, Sample- und Methodikfeldern ergänzt. ## Verknüpfte Konzepte - [Social Proof](/konzepte/social-proof/) ## Unterstützte Claims - [Soziale Normbotschaften können Verhalten beeinflussen, können aber je nach Formulierung auch unerwünschte Normen verstärken.](/claims/social-norm-messages-can-change-behavior/) ## FAQ ### Worum geht es in dieser Studie? A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effectiveness of social norms messaging approaches for improving health behaviours in developed countries.: Social norms approaches have been widely applied in health promotion as a cost-effective behaviour-change strategy, but have been little evaluated as a whole. We conducted a pre-registered systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials using social norms messaging in developed countries targeted at changing health behaviours among 16+-year-olds to evaluate their effectiveness. Relevant studies were identified through searches in PsycINFO, Medline, Embase, Web of Science, TRIP, Cochrane and grey literature sources. Risk of bias was assessed independently by two reviewers using the Cochrane RoB 2 tool. A random-effects meta-analysis standardized effect sizes to Cohen's d, assessed heterogeneity with I² and applied robust Bayesian meta-analysis to adjust for publication bias. Searches resulted in 89 studies (n = 85,759), which exhibited a small effect of social norms messaging on health behaviours (Cohen's d = 0.1, 95% confidence interval (CI) [0.09, 0.19], P < 0.001). However, this effect disappeared after controlling for publication bias. We conducted moderator analyses, finding no significant differences from the overall effect for different types of social norms message, delivery modalities, health domains or target populations. The review is limited by the lack of studies assessing whether normative information changed participant perceptions, inconsistent use of manipulation checks, and high heterogeneity across studies in terms of target behaviour, population and intervention delivery, affecting the robustness of conclusions. Our analysis suggests that when appropriately controlling for publication bias, social norms messages are not effective at improving health behaviours. Thus, future attempts at improving public health should focus on alternative approaches. Evidenzgrad A, Risk of Bias unclear. ### Welche Evidenz wird genutzt? Die Seite nutzt Claims, Studien, Use Cases und Quellen aus dem SurrealDB Knowledge Graph der Conversion-Psychologie-Wissensbasis. ### Ist die Ausgabe auf Deutsch verfügbar? Ja. Alle menschenlesbaren Inhalte und Agent-Ausgaben sind standardmäßig deutsch. ## Quellen - Papakonstantinou, T., Flecke, S. L., Edmunds, C. E. R., Cross, R., Tran, A., & Gold, N. (2025). A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effectiveness of social norms messaging approaches for improving health behaviours in developed countries. Nature human behaviour. https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2012.0080 [Quelle öffnen](https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2012.0080) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/#website", "url": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de", "name": "conversion.stevebaka.de", "description": "Deutschsprachige Wissensbasis und Audit-Plattform für evidenzbasierte Conversion-Psychologie.", "publisher": { "@id": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/#organization", "name": "conversion.stevebaka.de", "url": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de", "parentOrganization": { "@id": "https://stevebaka.de/#organization" }, "sameAs": [ "https://stevebaka.de" ] }, { "@type": "Person", "@id": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/autoren/steve-baka/#person", "name": "Steve Baka", "url": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/autoren/steve-baka/", "sameAs": [ "https://stevebaka.de" ], "jobTitle": "Conversion- und AI-Infrastructure-Berater", "knowsAbout": [ "Conversion-Psychologie", "Verkaufspsychologie", "Behavioral Science", "GraphRAG", "SurrealDB", "D-A-CH Conversion Optimierung" ] }, { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/studien/10-1089-cyber-2012-0080/#webpage", "url": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/studien/10-1089-cyber-2012-0080/", "name": "A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effectiveness of social norms messaging approaches for improving health behaviours in developed countries.", "description": "Social norms approaches have been widely applied in health promotion as a cost-effective behaviour-change strategy, but have been little evaluated as a whole. We conducted a pre-registered systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials using social norms messaging in developed countries targeted at changing health behaviours among 16+-year-olds to evaluate their effectiveness. Relevant studies were identified through searches in PsycINFO, Medline, Embase, Web of Science, TRIP, Cochrane and grey literature sources. Risk of bias was assessed independently by two reviewers using the Cochrane RoB 2 tool. A random-effects meta-analysis standardized effect sizes to Cohen's d, assessed heterogeneity with I² and applied robust Bayesian meta-analysis to adjust for publication bias. Searches resulted in 89 studies (n = 85,759), which exhibited a small effect of social norms messaging on health behaviours (Cohen's d = 0.1, 95% confidence interval (CI) [0.09, 0.19], P < 0.001). However, this effect disappeared after controlling for publication bias. We conducted moderator analyses, finding no significant differences from the overall effect for different types of social norms message, delivery modalities, health domains or target populations. The review is limited by the lack of studies assessing whether normative information changed participant perceptions, inconsistent use of manipulation checks, and high heterogeneity across studies in terms of target behaviour, population and intervention delivery, affecting the robustness of conclusions. Our analysis suggests that when appropriately controlling for publication bias, social norms messages are not effective at improving health behaviours. Thus, future attempts at improving public health should focus on alternative approaches.", "inLanguage": "de-DE", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/#website" }, "breadcrumb": { "@id": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/studien/10-1089-cyber-2012-0080/#breadcrumb" }, "datePublished": "2026-07-01", "dateModified": "2026-07-04", "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/studien/10-1089-cyber-2012-0080/#article" } }, { "@type": "ScholarlyArticle", "@id": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/studien/10-1089-cyber-2012-0080/#article", "headline": "A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effectiveness of social norms messaging approaches for improving health behaviours in developed countries.", "name": "A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effectiveness of social norms messaging approaches for improving health behaviours in developed countries.", "description": "Social norms approaches have been widely applied in health promotion as a cost-effective behaviour-change strategy, but have been little evaluated as a whole. We conducted a pre-registered systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials using social norms messaging in developed countries targeted at changing health behaviours among 16+-year-olds to evaluate their effectiveness. Relevant studies were identified through searches in PsycINFO, Medline, Embase, Web of Science, TRIP, Cochrane and grey literature sources. Risk of bias was assessed independently by two reviewers using the Cochrane RoB 2 tool. A random-effects meta-analysis standardized effect sizes to Cohen's d, assessed heterogeneity with I² and applied robust Bayesian meta-analysis to adjust for publication bias. Searches resulted in 89 studies (n = 85,759), which exhibited a small effect of social norms messaging on health behaviours (Cohen's d = 0.1, 95% confidence interval (CI) [0.09, 0.19], P < 0.001). However, this effect disappeared after controlling for publication bias. We conducted moderator analyses, finding no significant differences from the overall effect for different types of social norms message, delivery modalities, health domains or target populations. The review is limited by the lack of studies assessing whether normative information changed participant perceptions, inconsistent use of manipulation checks, and high heterogeneity across studies in terms of target behaviour, population and intervention delivery, affecting the robustness of conclusions. Our analysis suggests that when appropriately controlling for publication bias, social norms messages are not effective at improving health behaviours. Thus, future attempts at improving public health should focus on alternative approaches.", "inLanguage": "de-DE", "author": { "@id": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/autoren/steve-baka/#person" }, "publisher": { "@id": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/#organization" }, "mainEntityOfPage": { "@id": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/studien/10-1089-cyber-2012-0080/#webpage" }, "datePublished": "2026-07-01", "dateModified": "2026-07-04", "citation": [ "https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2012.0080" ], "mentions": [], "text": "A systematic review and meta analysis of the effectiveness of social norms messaging approaches for improving health behaviours in developed countries.: Social norms approaches have been widely applied in health promotion as a cost effective behaviour change strategy, but have been little evaluated as a whole. We conducted a pre registered systematic review and meta analysis of randomized controlled trials using social norms messaging in developed countries targeted at changing health behaviours among 16+ year olds to evaluate their effectiveness. Relevant studies were identified through searches in PsycINFO, Medline, Embase, Web of Science, TRIP, Cochrane and grey literature sources. Risk of bias was assessed independently by two reviewers using the Cochrane RoB 2 tool. A random effects meta analysis standardized effect sizes to Cohen's d, assessed heterogeneity with I² and applied robust Bayesian meta analysis to adjust for publication bias. Searches resulted in 89 studies (n = 85,759), which exhibited a small effect of social norms messaging on health behaviours (Cohen's d = 0.1, 95% confidence interval (CI) [0.09, 0.19], P < 0.001). However, this effect disappeared after controlling for publication bias. We conducted moderator analyses, finding no significant differences from the overall effect for different types of social norms message, delivery modalities, health domains or target populations. The review is limited by the lack of studies assessing whether normative information changed participant perceptions, inconsistent use of manipulation checks, and high heterogeneity across studies in terms of target behaviour, population and intervention delivery, affecting the robustness of conclusions. Our analysis suggests that when appropriately controlling for publication bias, social norms messages are not effective at improving health behaviours. Thus, future attempts at improving public health should focus on alternative approaches. Evidenzgrad A, Risk of Bias unclear. Quelle. Autor:innen: Trisevgeni Papakonstantinou, Sarah Lynn Flecke, C E R Edmunds, Rosina Cross, Anh Tran, Natalie Gold Jahr: 2025 Journal/Quelle: Nature human behaviour DOI: 10.1089/cyber.2012.0080 APA: Papakonstantinou, T., Flecke, S. L., Edmunds, C. E. R., Cross, R., Tran, A., & Gold, N. (2025). A systematic review and meta analysis of the effectiveness of social norms messaging approaches for improving health behaviours in developed countries. Nature human behaviour. https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2012.0080 Forschungsfrage / Summary. Social norms approaches have been widely applied in health promotion as a cost effective behaviour change strategy, but have been little evaluated as a whole. We conducted a pre registered systematic review and meta analysis of randomized controlled trials using social norms messaging in developed countries targeted at changing health behaviours among 16+ year olds to evaluate their effectiveness. Relevant studies were identified through searches in PsycINFO, Medline, Embase, Web of Science, TRIP, Cochrane and grey literature sources. Risk of bias was assessed independently by two reviewers using the Cochrane RoB 2 tool. A random effects meta analysis standardized effect sizes to Cohen's d, assessed heterogeneity with I² and applied robust Bayesian meta analysis to adjust for publication bias. Searches resulted in 89 studies (n = 85,759), which exhibited a small effect of social norms messaging on health behaviours (Cohen's d = 0.1, 95% confidence interval (CI) [0.09, 0.19], P < 0.001). However, this effect disappeared after controlling for publication bias. We conducted moderator analyses, finding no significant differences from the overall effect for different types of social norms message, delivery modalities, health domains or target populations. The review is limited by the lack of studies assessing whether normative information changed participant perceptions, inconsistent use of manipulation checks, and high heterogeneity across studies in terms of target behaviour, population and intervention delivery, affecting the robustness of conclusions. Our analysis suggests that when appropriately controlling for publication bias, social norms messages are not effective at improving health behaviours. Thus, future attempts at improving public health should focus on alternative approaches. Methode und Evidenzqualität. Studientyp: Studie Risk of Bias: unclear Evidenzgrad: A Key Findings. Evidence Fill Queue: Findings werden aus Volltext, Abstract und Review Notizen konsolidiert. Effektgrößen / Outcomes. Evidence Fill Queue: Effektgrößen und Outcomes werden aus Volltext Extraktionen priorisiert. Conversion Implikationen. Evidence Fill Queue: Conversion Implikationen werden nur ausgespielt, wenn Mechanismus, Kontext und Messgröße ableitbar sind. Limitationen. Evidence Fill Queue: Limitationen werden aus Risk of Bias , Sample und Methodikfeldern ergänzt. Verknüpfte Konzepte. Social Proof Unterstützte Claims. Soz", "learningResourceType": "Evidence source", "isBasedOn": [ "https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2012.0080" ], "about": [] }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "@id": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/studien/10-1089-cyber-2012-0080/#breadcrumb", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Startseite", "item": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effectiveness of social norms messaging approaches for improving health behaviours in developed countries.", "item": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/studien/10-1089-cyber-2012-0080/" } ] }, { "@type": "FAQPage", "@id": "https://conversion.stevebaka.de/studien/10-1089-cyber-2012-0080/#faq", "inLanguage": "de-DE", "mainEntity": [ { "@type": "Question", "name": "Worum geht es in dieser Studie?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effectiveness of social norms messaging approaches for improving health behaviours in developed countries.: Social norms approaches have been widely applied in health promotion as a cost-effective behaviour-change strategy, but have been little evaluated as a whole. We conducted a pre-registered systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials using social norms messaging in developed countries targeted at changing health behaviours among 16+-year-olds to evaluate their effectiveness. Relevant studies were identified through searches in PsycINFO, Medline, Embase, Web of Science, TRIP, Cochrane and grey literature sources. Risk of bias was assessed independently by two reviewers using the Cochrane RoB 2 tool. A random-effects meta-analysis standardized effect sizes to Cohen's d, assessed heterogeneity with I² and applied robust Bayesian meta-analysis to adjust for publication bias. Searches resulted in 89 studies (n = 85,759), which exhibited a small effect of social norms messaging on health behaviours (Cohen's d = 0.1, 95% confidence interval (CI) [0.09, 0.19], P < 0.001). However, this effect disappeared after controlling for publication bias. We conducted moderator analyses, finding no significant differences from the overall effect for different types of social norms message, delivery modalities, health domains or target populations. The review is limited by the lack of studies assessing whether normative information changed participant perceptions, inconsistent use of manipulation checks, and high heterogeneity across studies in terms of target behaviour, population and intervention delivery, affecting the robustness of conclusions. Our analysis suggests that when appropriately controlling for publication bias, social norms messages are not effective at improving health behaviours. Thus, future attempts at improving public health should focus on alternative approaches. Evidenzgrad A, Risk of Bias unclear." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Welche Evidenz wird genutzt?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Die Seite nutzt Claims, Studien, Use Cases und Quellen aus dem SurrealDB Knowledge Graph der Conversion-Psychologie-Wissensbasis." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Ist die Ausgabe auf Deutsch verfügbar?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Ja. Alle menschenlesbaren Inhalte und Agent-Ausgaben sind standardmäßig deutsch." } } ] } ] } ```