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Norms: Folkways, Mores, Taboos, and Laws
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Norms: Folkways, Mores, Taboos, and Laws
By Ashley Crossman
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Cultures
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Muslim Culture
Gender
Folk Culture
Cultural
Food Culture
In sociology, you will hear the
term "norm" quite often.
Norms are the specific
cultural expectations for how
to behave in a given situation.
They are the agreed-upon
expectations and rules by
which the members of a
culture behave. Norms vary
from culture to culture, so
some things that are
considered norms in one
culture may not be in another
culture. For example, in
Ryan McVay/ Digital Vision/ Getty Images
America it is a norm to
maintain direct eye contact when talking with others and it is often considered rude if you
do not look at the person you are speaking with. In Asian, on the other hand, averting
your eyes when conversing with others is a sign of politeness and respect while direct
eye contact is considered rude.
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• Social
• Values Education
http://sociology.about.com/od/Deviance/a/Folkways-Mores-Taboos-And-Laws.htm
There are four basic types of norms that
sociologists commonly refer to: folkways,
mores, taboos, and laws.
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Cultural forms of dress or food habits are
examples of folkways. In America, if
someone belched loudly while eating at the
dinner table with other people, he or she
would be breaking a folkway. It is culturally
appropriate to not belch at the dinner table,
however if this folkway is broken, there are
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Folkways
Folkways are often referred to as "customs."
They are standards of behavior that are
socially approved but not morally significant.
They are norms for everyday behavior that
people follow for the sake of tradition or
convenience. Breaking a folkway does not
usually have serious consequences.
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Norms: Folkways, Mores, Taboos, and Laws
12/1/14, 2:13 PM
no moral or legal consequences.
• Sociology Research
VIEW MORE IN EDUCATION
Mores
• Food People
Mores are strict norms that control moral
and ethical behavior. Mores are norms
based on definitions of right and wrong.
Unlike folkways, mores are morally
significant. People feel strongly about them and violating them typically results in
disapproval.
• People & Society
Religious doctrines are an example of mores. For instance, ff someone were to attend
church in the nude, he or she would offend most people of that culture and would be
morally shunned. Also, parents who believe in the more that only married people should
live together will disapprove of their daughter living with her boyfriend. They may
consider the daughter’s actions a violation of their moral guidelines.
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Taboos
A taboo is a norm that society holds so
strongly that violating it results in extreme
disgust. Often times the violator of the taboo
is considered unfit to live in that society. For
instance, in some Muslim cultures, eating
pork is taboo because the pig is considered
unclean. At the more extreme end, incest
and cannibalism are taboos in most
countries.
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Laws
A law is a norm that is written down and enforced by an official law enforcement agency.
Driving while drunk, theft, murder, and trespassing are all examples of laws in the United
States. If violated, the person violating the law could get cited, owe a fine, or go to jail.
References
Andersen, M.L. and Taylor, H.F. (2009). Sociology: The Essentials. Belmont, CA: Thomson
Wadsworth.
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