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NORMS Department of Sociology GCG-11, Chandigarh MEANING • Social norms are the behavioral expectations and cues within a society or group. This sociological term has been defined as "the rules that a group uses for appropriate and inappropriate values, beliefs, attitudes and behaviors. These rules may be explicit or implicit. Failure to follow the rules can result in severe punishments, including exclusion from the group." They have also been described as the "customary rules of behavior that coordinate our interactions with others. The social norms indicate the established and approved ways of doing things, of dress, of speech and of appearance. These vary and evolve not only through time but also vary from one age group to another and between social classes and social groups. TYPES OF NORMS • Injunctive Norms are behaviors which are perceived as being approved of by other people. • Descriptive Norms are perceptions of how other people are actually behaving, whether or not these are approved of. • Explicit Norms are written or spoken openly. • Implicit Norms are not openly stated (but you find out when you transgress them). • Subjective Norms: Expectations that valued others have about how we will behave. • Personal Norms: Standards we have about our own actions. • Prescriptive Norms are unwritten rules that are understood and followed by society. We do these every day without thinking about them. • Proscriptive Norms are unwritten rules that are known by society that you shouldn't do, or follow. These norms can vary from culture to culture. CHARACTERISTICS • • • • • • • • • Norms vary in nature Norms are situational Norms vary in intensity Norms serve as a frame of reference Norms are learnt Norms are enduring Norms are diverse Norms incorporate value judgements Norms are related to factual world FUNCTIONS • Make possible for human organism to survive. • Needs of the members of the society can be fulfilled only if members cooperate and adhere to the normative pattern of the society. • Much of the individual behaviour becomes automatic through social norms. • Norms give us identity and sense of belonging to a particular group. • Norms govern our emotions and perceptions. • Social punishments and rewards that promote adherence to norms are known as Sanctions. SANCTIONS • Norms are enforced within a culture by sanctions. Sanctions are society’s motivation to ensure conformity to norms by specifying the consequences of an individual’s behaviour.There are two types of sanctions: • Positive: Rewards are positive sanctions. • Negative: Punishments are negative sanctions. FOLKWAYS • The concept has been developed by W. G. Sumner in his book “Folkways” in 1906. Folkways are norms to which we conform because it is customary to do so in our society. They are not being considered extremely important & may be violated without severe punishment. MORES • The term has been used by W. G. Sumner in his book “Folkways”. Mores are norms that are looked on by the members of the society as being extremely important & the violation of which results in severe punishments. LAWS • Laws may be defined as the system of rules of behaviour that are formally sanctioned by the state. Laws are enacted by legislatures, interpreted & applied by courts and enforced by the police. Laws are written down. Unwritten laws refer to mores. IMPORTANCE • A normless society is an impossibility. • Norms give cohesion to society. • Norms influence individual’s attitudes. CONCLUSION • No social group can exist without norms. It is the norms that make possible the orderly social intercourse of people in societies. They serve the individual as guides to conduct. These constitute one of the basic components of the social structure. THANKS !!!