According to Van Lange et al. (2014), people influence the behaviors of others in different ways. The presence of other people greatly influences the way someone behaves. Social norms can be defined as the rules of behavior that are accepted in a society or by a group of people. The rules are unwritten and specify how people should behave in certain social groups or culture. People who fail to follow these norms are seen as rejects and may be made to suffer some consequences. The norms change with the situation, environment and they are modified with time.
There are different types of social norms that affect people in different places and situations. Some actions may violate different aspects of social norms. When someone sings out loudly in a bus or in a grocery store, they break the ‘respect’ social norm. Respect social norms define how people should respect other people’s comfort and freedom in the society. (Van Lange et al., 2014)
When someone sings loudly in a crowded place, not everyone will be interested in the music the person is singing. Those who will not like the music will take it as disturbance. There are people who do not like loud voices so for one to sing loudly near them, they will be very uncomfortable. This will mean that the person singing does not respect the comfort of other people.
Some people may react openly and tell the person to stop singing. They may even get annoyed and scorn the person publicly. Others may be annoyed and decide to keep quiet. Some may even decide to leave the place. A passenger in the bus may decide to change a seat or alight before they get to their destination.
The action of the person breaking the norm will depend on their conscience. For someone who respects other peoples’ rights, when they realize they have been singing loudly and that the people around them are annoyed, the person will apologize and stop singing. If the person does not respect others, he or she will continue singing.
When you stand too close to someone in a line or sit too close to someone in a restaurant, you violate the personal space social norm. Wherever people are, everyone needs personal space. They need some distance from them to the nearest person, they need to be able to turn and stretch freely. When you sit or stand too close to another person, they will not have freedom to move freely. The person will not be comfortable at all. It will be very annoying when someone turns and hits or their body comes into contact with another person. The reaction will depend with the other person. It will depend on gender and emotions of the person. Ladies tend to be more embarrassed when someone sits or stands too close to them. Some people will be polite and tell you to keep some distance. Others may get annoyed and embarrass you. Some people may also decide to quietly move from the place .
The reaction of the person breaking the norm will depend on the doer’s intention. If someone did it unknowingly, and you realize the person reacts indicating they are uncomfortable, you will move and keep some distance. If you did it intentionally, you will persist even when the other person is not comfortable.
References
Balliet, D. P., & Van Lange, P. A. (2014). How (and when) reward and punishment promote cooperation: An interdependence theoretical perspective. In P. Van Lange, B. Rockenbach, & T. Yamagishi, Social dilemmas: New perspectives on reward and punishment (pp. 34-51). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Lange, P. V., Balliet, D. P., Parks, C. D., & Vugt, M. v. (2014). Social Dilemmas: Understanding Human Cooperation. Oxford University Press: Oxford.
