An Analysis of Differential Impacts of Neutralization Techniques on Perceived Social Norms and Compliance

People modify behaviors according to their perceptions of the norms. However, people often utilize neutralization techniques to avoid social blame for ISP violations. We investigate how neutralization techniques affect normative influence on compliance by examining how different types of neutralization techniques impact employees’ perceived descriptive norm and perceived injunctive norm and their influence on ISP compliance. We also propose measures to counter each type of neutralization techniques.