What Is A Norm?

Within any culture lies an array of definitive demeanors and actions that are deemed socially adequate and inadequate. Depending on the distinguishing behavior of a given individual and the society that they live in, there are invisible “laws” that prevent people from acting a certain way. If the individual’s behavior is adverse to the superior, predominant norms of their society, the actions of that individual are considered to be deviant. Social deviance in shown in a variety of dissimilar faces: within physical appearance, actions done to oneself and others, and religious groups.

“Deviance in sociological context describes actions or behaviors that violate cultural norms including formally-enacted rules (e.g., crime) as well as informal violations of social norms.”

Norm violations are a form of actions that do not seem right to some people. Let’s say that you are in a public place, you are expected to act respectful and normal. Norms describes the expectation of a behavior. (James M. Henslin) One can perform a norm violation by doing the opposite of that, like invading personal space. There can be different reactions to violated norms which sociologists call sanctions. (Henslin) Mores, folkways, and values revolve around norms as well.

Deviance is the behavior and the standards of expectations of a group or society. It is also behavior that is considered dangerous, threatening or offensive. The people that are deviant are often labeled to be weirdos, oddballs, or creeps. In the United States, people with tattoos, drug addicts, alcoholics, and compulsive gamblers are all considered deviant. Sociologists believe that everybody is deviant from time to time. They believe each person will violate a social norm in certain situations. People are considered deviant if they don't stand for the national anthem at a sports event, dress casually to a fancy restaurant, or skip classes. One category of deviance is Crime. Crime is a violation of norms

With changing norms in response to deviance, the deviant behaviour can contribute to long-term social stability. This provides the key to understanding the disruption and recalibration of society that occurs over time. Some traits that could cause social disruption will be stigmatized. As traits become more mainstreamed, society will gradually adjust to incorporate the formerly stigmatized traits. Take, for example, homosexuality. In urban America 50 years ago, homosexual behaviour was considered deviant. On the one hand, this fractured society into those marked as homosexuals and those unmarked as normative heterosexuals. While this us-versus-them mentality solidified social identities and solidarities within the two categories, there was nevertheless an overarching social schism.

Everyone in today's society has participated in forms of deviant behavior whether they're aware of it or not. Deviant behavior refers to violations of social norms. Norms are behavioral codes or prescriptions that guide people into actions and self-presentations conforming to social acceptability. American sociologists, William Sumner (1907) formed three types of norms: folkways, mores, and laws. The behavior I partaken in is considered to be Mores.

Within society we follow a set standard of social norms. Those norms indicate what is acceptable. For an example, the way we speak and dress. Over times, societal norms progress from one group to another also between social class and groups. Therefore, when the norms are not being followed they are considered deviant, someone that does not conform to social norms and values and often being viewed as an outcast of society.

In today’s society, norms are expected by everyone. According to the book Essentials of Sociology a Down- To- Earth Approach, Hansen states that norms are expectations of "right” behavior (Hansen, 2014). There are also two forms of norms that may be strictly enforced or not. There is folkways and mores. Folkways are norms that aren’t strictly enforced while mores are strictly enforced for essential thought to care values or the well-being of a group (Hansen, 2014). Along with a norm and the two types, there may also be reactions to it. These reactions may be positive or negative and termed as sanctions. Sanctions are either expressions of an approval given to people for upholding norms or expression of disapproval for violating them (Hansen, 2014). In conducting a norm experiment, the terms were put to a test. The experiment consisted of an observed norm violation and an individual norm violation. The experiments resulted in what I had hypothesized. My hypothesis consisted of sanctions of the norms that were conducted.

At the grocery store, I violated the social norm of purchasing the whole bag of grapes displayed, not just one individual grape. When I did this, I felt awkward because I was going against societies expectations of me. I also received repercussions as I violated the norm because I did not fit in and began to separate myself from the crowd of conformists. I experienced an array of reactions throughout this incident. The manager was called over, customers were curious and annoyed, and the cashier became very confused and aggravated. They were surprised I was breaking the unwritten rules of society. Two different types of norms include mores and folkways. Mores are formal outlined norms that result in severe punishment when violated. A few examples of mores are laws, religion, and plagiarism. Folkway norms are unwritten expected behaviors society holds to keep it systematic and predictable (Conley, 2011, pgs. 91-92). Examples of folkway norms include waiting in lines, walking on the right side of the sidewalk, and my field research study of buying the entire bag of grapes or similar produce, instead of just one. Different punishments for violating these norms are comprised of positive and negative sanctions. Positive sanctions, or rewards, encourage the conformity of social norms. Some examples include getting a raise in your job for hard work or receiving an A+ on a test for studying. Negative sanctions are the discouragement or punishment used because of a violation of a social norm. Examples of this include putting someone in prison or intentionally not speaking to someone for a period of time. In my field research I experienced a negative sanction of hearing adverse comments about my actions. Another concept is culture, a set of beliefs, traditions, and practices that are not a part of the natural world. Two types of culture are material culture and nonmaterial culture.

‘social groups create deviance by making the rules whose infraction constitutes deviance, and by applying those rules to particular people and labelling them as outsiders. From this point of vie, deviance is not a quality of the act the person commits, but rather a consequence of the application by others of the rules and sanctions to an ‘offender’. The deviant is one to whom the label has successfully been applied, deviant behaviour is behaviour that people so label. (Becker 1963, pg 9)

Social Norms can be defined as expectations, or rules of behavior, that develop out of values or morals. Someone’s values can be defined as their idea of what is desirable in life. People develop expectations of what is the right way to reflect these values. When norms are violated people are usually shocked and form sanctions from the norm that is being broken, either positively or negatively. For this paper I was required to violate a norm.

The research done in this paper provides a better understanding of deviance and social control. There are various factors to research on the topic to develop a complete understanding of the two ideas. Specifically, the goal is to identify factors that directly impact deviance and social control and if one can exist without the other. These topics provide a better understanding of the human behavior and actions because of social control and societal norms. The focus of this discussion is to provide a detailed analysis of societal norms, deviance, and social control. I have used supporting research and my own personal ideas to develop the findings in this paper. It has become evident that without societal norms there would be no social

Abnormal behavior in one society appears normal in the other society (Nairne, 426). Deviance is weighed by the society’s reactions to the particular behavior, also it is measured by the society’s way of life so that it defines the unwelcoming behavior. It ignores the social order and some organizations believe, the reality in society.

Defining deviance as behaviour, which violates consensual social norms, also raises the questions of whose norms? Why are some norms more important than others? And why do some norms appear to serve the interests of capitalist governments and the powerful? .

Question 1 – Explain what deviance is socially constructed means. Discuss 2 types of positive deviance and 2 types of negative deviance which are socially constructed in the United States. Provide examples of each.