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

Social norms are well-established predictors of health and pro-environmental behaviors, with prior research distinguishing between descriptive and injunctive norms and between individual and collective norms. However, these distinctions largely reflect a static view of norms at a single point in time. The concept of dynamic norms addresses this limitation by incorporating temporal change, demonstrating that shifts in social norms over time can influence behavior. This perspective aligns with the reality that many recommended behaviors have not yet become widespread but are showing a positive upward trend. Despite growing empirical interest since 2017, theoretical development on dynamic norms remains limited. To map the evolution and application of this concept, we conducted a bibliometric analysis of 49 empirical articles on dynamic norms. Our findings indicated that while dynamic norms extend traditional social norm theories, the conceptualization and operationalization across studies remain inconsistent, focusing either on behavioral shifts from an old to a new behavior or on trends in the adoption of new behaviors. This review highlights the foundations and gaps in dynamic norms research and sheds light on future research on promoting health and pro-environmental behaviors.