Whom to punish? How observers sanction norm‐violating behavior in ostracism situations

When observing ostracism, individuals can either side with the target or the sources of ostracism. Here we demonstrate that side‐taking depends on whether the target previously acted in adherence to or in violation of perceived social norms. In four studies, a target behaved either norm‐consistently or violated a social norm, and was subsequently either excluded by the sources or was not. Next, participants could sanction the behavior of the...