The Theory of Conditionality: An Illustration of the Place of Norms in the Field of Social Thinking

Abstract

In the field of the central core theory of social representations, research which has focused on the normative aspects is relatively recent as it dates back little more than ten years. The theory of conditionality which developed from research into the periphery of representation results from this. It is a particularly fruitful theory to explain “normative latitudes” and the behaviour accruing to them. One of the particularities of these works stresses the importance of linking the normative aspects with specific methods and/or analyses. In this paper, we will illustrate it via a specific tool developed in the field of traffic psychology: the Conditional Script Questionnaire (CSQ). This approach makes it possible to highlight the interactions between two systems of norms: the legal system and the social system. The implication of norms is fundamental in different processes already studied such as social influence or identity processes, and this article can be considered as an illustration of the place of norms in the field of social thinking.

La perception du risque d’accident et de chute par des personnes âgées vivant à domicile : un arbitrage complexe ?

“…10 Nos propos ne sont pas sans rappeler les travaux sur la conditionnalité de la règle qui ont été développés en lien avec la théorie des représentations sociales d'Abric [18] et Flament [19]. Ainsi, selon Gaymard [20], toute prescription comporte, au niveau même de la représentation qu'en ont les individus, des variations conditionnelles tolérables dites « transgressions légitimes » qui ne remettent pas en question la règle, mais rendent acceptable sa transgression dans un certain nombre de contextes. 11 Le risque fait partie inhérente de la vie et c'est un droit qui est d'ailleurs consigné dans la charte des droits et libertés de la personne âgée dépendante (« la personne âgée en perte d'autonomie garde la liberté de choisir son mode de vie (.…”

Social representations and social marketing: Effectiveness of awareness campaigns on the representation of public policies?

“…Within this framework, we specifically focus on the theory of the central core (Abric, , , , , ; Flament, , , , , ; Gaymard, , , ; Guimelli, , ). This theory has been developed during the last 40 years.…”

“…Within this framework, we specifically focus on the theory of the central core (Abric, 1976(Abric, , 1994(Abric, , 2001a(Abric, , 2001b(Abric, , 2003Flament, 1984Flament, , 1987Flament, , 1991Flament, , 1994aFlament, , 1999Gaymard, 2003Gaymard, , 2006Gaymard, , 2014Guimelli, 1993Guimelli, , 1998. This theory has been developed during the last 40 years.…”

Nanotechnologies, Risks and Societal Concerns

“…The social representation of new technologies, specifically nanotechnology, is a new field for the construction of legal expertise knowing that the conditionality theory has revealed that social norms could cause legal norms to evolve (Gaymard, 2014). For a long time the law has constituted an area of knowledge in which theory and practice are separated, thus presenting difficulties in its approach to them.…”

“…The structural approach defends the existence of a central core representing the collective part of the representation, and a periphery that would appear to be linked more with individual practices. Although interesting to describe the configuration of the social representation, this model nevertheless has limits when the normative aspects of the representation are addressed (Gaymard, 2014). At the moment we can ask ourselves how nanotechnology is integrated into common sense (to what degree?…”