Psychological structure of group norms

The psychological structure of group norms consists of three components: «reference norms», «prescriptive norms», and «descriptive norms». From the point of view of the theory of group identity, reference norms are stable cognitive representations of behavior that is acceptable to the members of a group, prescriptive norms mark the level of remuneration and negative sanctions for compliance with or violation of group norms, descriptive norms specify the value content of belonging to a group.