What are the consequences of misperceiving norms?
A main consequence of not seeing the true picture of what is going on is that it may influence behaviour in a negative fashion. If people think that everyone else is engaging a specific health risk behavior, and that it is accepted more than it actually is, then there is a greater likelihood of participating in this “false” behavior. By contrast, in those groups that accurately see lower substance abuse norms – we also see a lower prevalence of substance abuse behaviors.
