Harro Social Norms

Have you ever done something so odd and so weird that you got hundreds of funny looks in your direction? Usually, when you get these looks, you are breaking some sort of social norm. Social norms are rules of behavior that are considered acceptable in a society during certain situations, but breaking the social norms can be highly frowned upon in the social world we live in today. Certain social norms that are universally known include driving on the right side of the road, keeping a pinky promise and living by the golden rule. Social norms can keep a community together and running smoothly if used, but many people like to push the boundaries of normality to see what happens and how others will respond. Although, I do not embarrass easily, I thought it would be interesting to see people’s reactions if for just one day I violated a social norm.

Socialization is an ongoing process in which individuals obtains a personal identity, learns norms, values and behaviour appropriate to his/her position. People constantly require approval of the things they do, they continually seek to be socially competent and to be accepted by those around them. It is human nature to want to be similar from others in order to be accepted in a certain social spheres but at the same time wanting to be different and unique. There are primary and secondary agents of socialization. The primary agents are those that are basic and fundamental to social beings, these include family and friends from which we learn behaviour at young age; they transmit norms and values to us. The secondary agents are those that are more external to us than family such as social institutions/organisations, these include schools,

“Social norms are rules and standards that are understood by members of a group, and that guide and/or constrain human behavior without the force of laws” (Steg, 2013, p. 154). Social norms have two areas or types they fall into. Injunctive norms are considered behavior that is approved or disapproved and descriptive norms are described as behavior shown by the members of a group. Individuals follow social norms for the rewards involved and the individual wants to avoid rejection and ridicule from societal members. “Social norms can exert a powerful influence on pro-environmental behavior through normative and informational influence” (Steg, 2013, p. 162). Behavior is influenced through normative and informational influences, also moderator variables that may decrease or increase the strength of the influence. Moderator variables contain the size of the group in question, the salience of the norm, if the group is considered an in-group, and the individual personal norms. “A wide variety of research shows that the behavior of others in the social environment shape individuals’ interpretations of, and responses to, the situation, especially in novel, ambiguous, or uncertain

Our socialization process consists of eight phases. According to Eric Erikson they are Trust vs. Mistrust, Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt, Initiative vs. Guilt, Industry (competence) vs. Inferiority, Identity vs. Role Confusion, Intimacy vs. Isolation, Generativity vs. Stagnation, and Ego Integrity vs. Despair. They all occur at different stages in our life span.

There is a reason behind almost everything that humans do during everyday life. However, we do not think about why we waved back at the person across the street, we just do it. Interpreting that person’s wave and reacting to it by waving back, smiling, or nodding is a part of sociology. After taking a sociology class you realize all these everyday behaviors have meaning. Now, all of a sudden I found myself thinking sociologically when I get into an elevator, wait in line at the grocery store, or even how I view myself.

To start, I will discuss what social norms are. Societal norms are both unwritten informal rules that are accepted by people and written formal rules that are strictly enforced laws, of how people should carry themselves (Keirns, et al., 2016). Social norms are part of the socialization process. The socialization process is the way people “learn the norms and beliefs of our society” to fit in (Keirns, et al., 2016, n.p.). Some examples of social norms are looking into the eyes of the person you are speaking with, using silverware instead of your hands when eating, and saying excuse me when you belch in front of someone. Societal norms give myself and people guidelines of how to carry themselves in different situations. More importantly, social

Socialization is defined as “the lifelong process of social interaction through which individuals acquire a self-identity and the physical, mental, and social skills needed for survival in society” (Kendall et al., 2007, p.99). As mentioned by Barkan (2011), socialization

Social control involves rules of behavior that those of society follow. Without these rules or the knowledge of how members of society follow these rules, there is no way to enforce laws. Without this knowledge there is no law, therefore law is a form of social control. This Political Sociology course helps those who want to proceed in the field of law; including myself, due to gaining the knowledge of how the government regulates the activities of those individuals in a society and how those individuals act within that said environment.

Social norms are what the world or society view as acceptable ways to act. A social norm that I tend to follow would be facing the front when riding on an elevator. This is one that I assume most people follow, but I have actually been in a situation where someone walked on an elevator while they were texting and never turned around. I had never thought about that being socially normal until someone didn’t face the door. However, it is only normal because the majority believes it’s normal.

With the goal for you to keep on staying acknowledged in the present social society you live in today you must follow a certain set of social norms for the duration of your life, often you manage without acknowledging it. Even though social norms are broken regular surrounding you on a wide range of various levels some innocuous and some more serious and careless, like stealing. Social norms are not generally the same since different societies have different values. Without social norms there would be total chaos; social norms make society's conduct clearly predictable. To me our society is predictable anyway because it makes people feel more safe knowing that everyone is doing the same thing. When a norm is broken in our society people automatically

Since the start of human civilization, the creation of social norms has continuously laid the foundation of what behaviors are acceptable and what behaviors are not. These norms are what society as a whole looks to for guidance on how to act and live their lives. Although these normalities are often seen as positive, and while they do help carry society and it’s people, they also can have negative effects by creating unneeded pressures and tensions within relationships. Relationships being romantic, friendly, or family like. Social norms play the most influencing role in people's lives not matter if they are healthy or beneficial, they still shape and mold human civilization and its people.

I felt extremely uncomfortable and like a complete intruder when I violated this norm and I honestly wouldn’t want anyone to do it to me. Personally, I do demand others to respect and be mindful of my personal space. In order to have an effective interaction with other people, it is very important that we understand spatial behavior and spatial needs. Respecting other’s territories is such a basic social norm but sometimes people forget to practice it which creates problems with other people and chaos within societies. Spatial norms should be learned since infancy to such extent that they should become unconscious and almost habitual. Social norms create stability, standardized behaviors, and a shared understanding of what’s expected from

The cycle of socialization is a process through which social identities are created, and in effect, each individual represents and is affected by their social identity. According to the cycle of socialization, the first stop in the socialization process is outside of one’s control—one is socialized even before they are born. Our social identities are predetermined, and we are born in a world with roles, rules, and assumptions already in place. Our family and role models teach these rules and roles to us, for they are the shapers of expectations, values, and norms. The first step in the cycle of socialization is directly related to mental models. In the beginning of the socialization process, we are taught certain rules and roles to

Social norms are behaviors that are expected within our society. When we see these norms out in public we might not acknowledge them because we’re expected to know how to act in different places or situations. When these norms are violated people may be confused of the situation and can become confused, annoyed, or mad. Social norms are a part of our everyday lives since before we were born there were norms laid out for us already, from the way we’re supposed to behave, dress, and even talk. Norms have high value in our society “they are the standards by which people define what is desirable or undesirable, good or bad beautiful or ugly”. There’re what we expect in our society from our behavior at school, in public, or school. Each place has a certain norm we as a society should know when and how to follow.

Theorists have agreed, within their own disciplines, on either specific definitions of or even what distinguishes a rule from a social norm (Gibbs, 1965; Shimanoff, 1980). In general, norms differ from rules in that the latter are more formalized through codification and are prescriptive and controllable. Rules are punishable through external sanctions applies by other members of the group or designated authority outside of the social aggregate (Gibbs, 1965, 1972). A norm is an abstract idea of a behavior held in the mind of the group member that sets certain limits for acceptable behavior (Johnson,