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The Role of Organizational Culture 235

The Effects of Culture on Individuals
How does organizational culture control the behavior of organizational members? If
consistent behavioral patterns are the outcomes or products of a culture, what is it
that causes many people to act in a similar manner? There are four basic ways in which
a culture, or more accurately members of a reference group representing a culture,
creates high levels of cross-individual behavioral consistency: social norms, shared
values, shared mental models, and social identities.
Social norms are the most basic and most obvious of cultural control mechanisms.
In its basic form, a social norm is simply a behavioral expectation that people will act
in a certain way in certain situations. Social sanctions enforced by other members of
a reference group support norms (as opposed to rules). Kilmann, Saxton, and Serpa
(1986) characterize norms by level.
• Peripheral norms are general expectations that make interactions easier and more
pleasant. Because adherence to these norms is not essential to the functioning of the
group, violation of these norms in general results in mild social sanctions.
• Relevant norms encompass behaviors that are important to group functioning.
Violation of these norms often results in noninclusion in important group functions
and activities.
• Pivotal norms represent behaviors that are essential to effective group functioning.
Individuals violating these norms are often subject to expulsion from the group.

Why do individuals comply with social norms? What explains the variance among
individuals with a group in the degree of compliance with norms? Why do some
members comply with all norms, while others seem to ignore them? Individuals moti-
vated primarily by means of acceptance, worth, and status and other forms of external
validation would be most likely to comply with social norms. Since social sanctions
involve the withholding of acceptance, these individual are most likely to comply.
Likewise, those characterized by weak self-concepts would be more likely to comply
with social norms than with those with strong self-concepts. Those with strong self-
concepts are less likely to need the acceptance and other forms of affi rmation contin-
gent upon compliance with norms.
Individuals who identify with the group, that is, who defi ne their social identity
in terms of the group, are more likely to comply with the group ’ s norms. One of the
most powerful bases of compliance or conformity is internalization, that is, believing
that the behavior dictated by the norm is truly the right and proper way to behave.
Over time, many group members begin to internalize pivotal and relevant norms.
High status members of a group are often exempt from peripheral norms, as are those