Overview: Norms are building blocks of cultural climate They include tradition, fashion, and trends. Laws, rules, and policy can be norms too, if they influence behavior. Norms reduce the stress of choosing how to behave and respond to a multitude of day-to-day choices in home, school, community, and work environments. Norms also influence drug use, violence, and beliefs about health. Norms that focus on blame, helplessness, win-lose (versus win-win), or acting without skills or clear purpose can set up conditions, or a climate, that prevents desired results.

How Climate Change Works: It provides a group or organization with tools to select ways to manage their behavior and make on purpose choices about the future of their culture. It is a democratic process that calls upon members to be responsible and cooperate to assess, set goals, change, and renew culture.

The Payoff: Organization function can be strengthened when all members join and work to change the climate. Organizations that have "a good program" or plan that is "not working" can assess how cultural norms influence results. Learning about cultural norms offers a tool to build awareness of different experiences, talk openly about them, accept that each person sees the world through their own "set of glasses," and transform conflicts or uncomfortable climates.

How to Make It Happen: In any place that people gather with a shared purpose, it is possible for them to change norms. External consultants and facilitators can provide support. Teams, organizations, and communities can support useful change by strengthening norms for group learning.

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