Social norms Notes

How Do Social Norms Coordinate Behavior in Groups?

1. A social group relies on cooperation.
2. If individuals constantly acted in ways that harmed others or took unfair advantage, the group would struggle to survive and prosper.
3. Norms reduce that risk by making behavior more predictable.
4. Norms operate at different levels:
   1. Everyday interaction norms (for example, taking turns speaking)
   2. Moral norms (for example, not using violence)
   3. Institutional norms (for example, attending school on time)
5. Many norms feel "natural" because we learn them early and see them reinforced repeatedly.
6. However, norms are not universal. They depend on culture, history, and the institutions that shape a community.

How Are Norms and Values Related?

1. Norms are closely tied to values.
2. A useful way to separate the two is:
   1. Values describe what a group believes is important (for example, respect, fairness, loyalty).
   2. Norms describe what people are expected to do (for example, say "please," do not vandalize public property, respect elders).
3. In practice, values often justify norms.
4. If a community values public order, it may develop strong norms against vandalism and littering.
5. If a community values individual freedom, it may develop norms that tolerate a wide range of self-expression.

What Are Laws Then?

1. All groups have ways of communicating expectations and dealing with rule-breaking.
2. Some groups rely mostly on informal pressure, while others use formal systems.
3. Legal systems are used to set standards for behavior and make it very clear what conduct will and will not be tolerated.
4. In this sense, laws are a powerful form of norm-setting because they come with explicit, institutional consequences (fines, prison, loss of rights).
5. Importantly, laws can be:
   1. Religiously based, where religious rules strongly influence state law
   2. Secular, where laws are not determined by a religious authority, even if they developed historically from religious values
6. Either way, laws shape a society's norms and help create shared expectations.

What Influence Does Religion and Philosophy Have Over Norms?

1. For many societies today, and for most societies in the past, religion has played an active role in shaping expectations for conduct.
2. Religious teachings can influence:
   1. Family relationships and duties
   2. Moral expectations (right and wrong)
   3. Community responsibilities
   4. Government policies and law
3. The systematic study of values and what people "ought" to do is part of normative ethics.

How Are Norms Maintained?

1. Norms persist because people learn them and because there are consequences for breaking them.
2. More formally, norms are maintained through socialization and sanctions.
3. Socialization is the process of learning norms through family, peers, school, media, and institutions.
4. People internalize expectations over time, so they often follow norms even when no one is watching.
5. Sanctions can be:
   1. Informal (laughter, gossip, praise, exclusion, dirty looks)
   2. Formal (detention, fines, arrest, job dismissal)
6. Sanctions explain why norms can feel powerful.
7. Even without a written rule, students may follow classroom norms because the social cost of breaking them (embarrassment, disapproval) is immediate.

Why Do Social Norm Change When Society Changes?

1. Norms aren't fixed.
2. They change as people's needs, technologies, and social structures change.
3. One way to explain change is to focus on how interaction patterns shift.
4. As populations grow denser and technology increases contact between people, the frequency and intensity of social interaction can increase.
5. This can reshape roles inside groups and create new expectations (for example, norms about smartphone use, online privacy, or workplace communication).
6. Norms may also change when:
   1. Economic conditions shift (new jobs, new inequalities)
   2. Laws change (for example, expanding or restricting rights)
   3. Social movements challenge older expectations
   4. New generations redefine acceptable behavior