Social Norms
It is believed by professionals and sociologist that everyone in society has as social role to play in the community. In society people are Social norms are a social constructed created and shared by individuals in a community. These norms are defined by actions and behaviors performed by people in society which they are expected by other people in society to act this way. For example, in today’s society, In Western culture, it is a social norm to give an individual personal space if they are a stranger, and if you are forced to encroach upon their personal space unexpectedly, you are expected to apologize . Some Eastern cultures do not practice this, but in Western culture, space is very important. As a sanction for such a violation, dirty looks and perhaps aggressive body language is displayed. Should these be ignored, violators may be labeled with extreme words, such as, “creep,” “stalker,” or even, “rapist.” Many people do not like being touched by strangers in Western culture.
This area of study has been researched by many sociologists such as Emile Durkheim. Durkheim was a sociologist who founded the functionalist perspective. Functionalist such as Durkheim believe that society function like a human body and its organs. They believe the society and its institutions have to work together to make society function properly.
Social cohesion is a result of social norms as it a shared sense of these norms by the community which gives birth to a sense of belonging for the people in the community and creates a sense of trust on the community. Members of the community also get rid of disadvantages and inequality by following the same social norms.
Without social norms, Durkheim believes society would be thrown into a state of anomie. This is a state of chaos and normlessness. A social norm can be considered a guideline or a belief for behavior in a social community. They are what a society abides by and what is considered acceptable and not acceptable. It is safe to say that without these social norms, which can also be referred to as traditions that have been passed on one from one generation to the next, we would wander aimlessly without knowing what to do. As children are we have two types socialization in which we learn these norms which are primary and secondary socialization. Primary socialization is what sociologist refer to as being brought up by our parents. They fulfil our physical needs such as feeding their children and providing shelter and clothes to wear.
Another social norm in Western culture is to make eye contact when speaking to somebody. A sanction for this transgression is to politely state why a person should make eye contact, or to ascertain why the individual will not make eye contact. Should the transgression continue, consequences include being thought to be a rude or cold individual. Today, people are also immediately assumed to be on the Autistic Spectrum in many cases, and end up being the butt of many jokes, if they are unable to complete expected cues as a part of social norms.
In sum, social norms are a part of everyday life. Social norms are all around us, even if we do not notice them. Moreover, even if we do not notice them, we adhere to them. It is likely that we adhere to them unconsciously because we have been trained to. Society has sanctions and violations put in place in the event that we do not obey these aforementioned norms, ensuring we stick to them. We adjust our behavior, whether we realize it or not, to fit our culture because of these norms. There are sanctions that warn us when we step out of line. Should we continue to do so, we must face the consequences. Thus far, the social norms have been unforgiving.
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References
Healey, J. F., & O'Brien, E. (2014). Race, Ethnicity, Gender, and Class: The Sociology of Group Conflict and Change. Sacramento: SAGE Publications.
Van Krieken, R., Habibis, D., Smith, P., Hutchins, B., Martin, G., & Maton, K. (2013). Sociology. Boston: Pearson Higher Education.
