What role do social norms play for interreligious contact and attitudes in Togo and Sierra Leone?

What is it about?

Social norms, which are group-based standards of behavior, matter for interreligious peace. We studied the role of social norms for interreligious peace in the form of interreligious contact and attitudes. Hereby, we focused specifically on pro-mixing ingroup norms, hence, group-based standards of behavior supporting that members of different religions become friends. There are two ways through which such norms could be related to interreligious contact, and ultimately, interreligious attitudes. First, ingroup norms could affect intergroup contact directly by encouraging or sanctioning individuals interacting with religious outgroup members. Second, ingroup norms could be internalized by individuals so that they align with their own preferences for interreligious contact. The two studies we conducted in Togo and Sierra Leone provide evidence that pro-mixing ingroup norms were associated with individuals having more positive contact with members of other religions and holding more favorable interreligious attitudes. Our results further suggest that both the absence of social sanctions and internalization into individual preferences explain these relationships.

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Photo by Noah Holm on Unsplash

Photo by Noah Holm on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Religion plays a role in many (violent) conflicts. Previous research indicates that the number of armed conflicts fought over religious issues is even increasing. Therefore, strategies to foster and keep interreligious peace must be developed. We learned that social norms matter for positive interreligious contact and attitudes. These findings could help design interventions to foster interreligious peace. For instance, our results suggest that interventions which communicate that in a specific social context, positive interreligious contact is common and approved of enhance peaceful relations.