Social norms are one of the most distinctive characteristics of human societies. Thus far, there is no clear theoretical understanding of the following fundamental question: Why is a social norm formed and how is it maintained? This question seems to be simple at first glance. We may define a norm as a standard of behavior that explicitly tells people what behaviors are socially desirable. Therefore, as far as people agree with the socially desirable behaviors, the existence of the norm seems to be obvious. However, this definition of a social norm solves only "the coordination problem." For example, one norm in Japan is to drive on the left side of the road. When everyone complies with this norm, traffic flows smoothly. It is against an individual's own self-interest not to comply with the norm and drive on the right side of the road. The coordination problem thus presupposes that individuals' self-interest is not in conflict with the interest of the collectivity. However, there are cases in which an individually desirable behavior contradicts a socially desirable behavior. When individually desirable behaviors are in conflict with socially desirable ones, an explicit manifestation of social desirability is not capable of changing the individual's behaviors by itself. In these cases, individuals often do not abide by the social norm even though they clearly recognize what behavior is required by the norm. Given the potential conflict of interest between the individual and the collective, the question of norm formation is: Under what conditions can socially desirable behaviors be individually desirable as well? Our project addresses the question of why a certain norm is formed and becomes stable in a specific social environment by applying evolutionary game theories and an empirical research methodology used in evolutionary game modeling. Our project also focuses on the fundamental psychological characteristics that support social norms, such as "ability for socio-cultural leaning" and "ability for synchronizing attention and emotion with others." Based on findings in anthropology and comparative cognitive science, we examine evolutionary foundations that enable us to have such abilities. We aim to achieve an integrated understand of norm formation and maintenance through applications of evolutionary game modeling, the autonomous agent simulation, group experiments and fieldwork.

Return to the Top of Outline | The mind that creates a society | The mind as an adaptive tool
The generation of norms | Mind and culture mediated by social institutions