Norm Diffusion: Evidence from the Aftermath of the Killing of George Floyd

In diverse societies, how do individuals form views about different groups? We argue that individuals learn norms of interaction in bundles: strong signals about norms toward one marginalized group can diffuse to norms about another. Empirically, we study the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd, a moment that spurred reckoning with violence against Black Americans. Using a regression discontinuity in time with rich individual-level data, we find the event made Americans more favorable toward other underprivileged groups—including those not defined by race or ethnicity (LGBTQ individuals). Consistent with a norm-change interpretation, effect strength depends more on the ideological orientation of respondents’ local areas than on their personal ideology. These results show how salient events shape intergroup norms and highlight the importance of local preference distributions in processes of normative change.