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For this project, you must break an unwritten social norm--i.e., not conform to some social expectation. It is up to you what
norm you break--you can do a behavior that is non-normative across our culture, e.g., facing the back rather than the front of
an elevator when riding it, or something that is non-normative among some smaller group of which you are a member.
You must break this norm in the presence of others and it should be something that you don’t normally do. You may not
harm yourself or others, nor may you break any school rules or do anything that would otherwise get you in trouble. You may
not break a norm during any of your classes or at church/mosque/synagogue or other sacred place! Depending on the norm
you choose to break, you will need to break the norm several times or consistently for a time period so that you can get a
variety of reactions to report. Whatever norm you choose to break you need to make sure it is powerful enough to engage a
response and to be able to report on it! You may work in a group of two or three. If you choose to work in a group, each
individual MUST take their turn at breaking the norm. The other members of the group are simply there to help facilitate if
needed. Video or photograph of the norm being broken is a MUST, therefore, get paired up with someone who can get the
film rolling! Remember to keep the camera hidden, as the camera itself can cause people to alter their behavior.
What to include in the paper (section headings):
 Title – think of something clever!
 Conformity and Social norms. Define “conformity” and “social norm” and give a real life example of each. (*Note- all
examples should be different from the norm you are breaking)
 The Norm. Describe the social norm you broke. Describe the situation, what is normally expected, and what you did that
was not consistent with those expectations. If your norm is one that people outside a particular group would be unfamiliar
with (for example, you are a member of a sports team that has a certain pre-game ritual that you broke), you may have to
go into some detail to set the stage so that people outside the group can comprehend how what you did constituted
breaking a norm.
 Reactions. Describe other people’s reactions to what you did. Did they behave how you expected? Did they ignore you?
Did they respond to you and if so, how –verbally? Non-verbally?
 How I Felt. Describe how you felt. Did you “chicken out” at some point? Start laughing? Blush? Was it fun?
Exhilarating? Mortifying? Did your feelings change as time went on? How did you feel before, during, and after breaking
the norm? Report and describe the experience as a whole.
 My Insights. Describe anything else of note that occurred. For example, is it possible that your perceptions of what other
people were thinking were biased by the fact that you were embarrassed? Did anyone else follow your lead (i.e., did you
set a NEW norm, by breaking an old one)? Upon breaking the norm, did you become aware of the reason for its existence
that you hadn’t thought of before? Did you experience anything that might relate to other concepts we’ve learned in class
(for example, cognitive dissonance, altruism, classical or operant conditioning, etc…)? Show me some insight here!
Mechanics and Composition: Each section should be 1-2 solid paragraphs in length! You should proofread your paper for
grammatical errors and typos. Your paper should be clear and interesting. Students will hand in a paper that is no less than 3
full pages in length and no longer than 4 pages in length, double-spaced. Your font size should be 14, type should be Times
New Roman and all margins should be set at 1”. If the length of the paper does not meet these classifications, the margins are
off or the font size/type is not correct ... you will lose 10 points immediately before I even begin to read the paper!
Rubric
Section
Title
Presentation
Conformity and social
norms
The Norm.
Reactions
Points
/10
/10
/10
/10
How I Felt.
/10
My Insights.
Total
/10
/60
Comments
Minus 2 if it isn’t clever
You must give a 3-5 minute presentation on your norm breaking with video!
2.5 points each for definitions and examples
5 pt each for situation, what is normally expected, and what you did.
I’m looking for evidence that you were observant. A weak description will earn you 3
pts.
I’m looking for evidence that you were introspective. A weak description will earn you
3 points.
More insight = more points!
Garber2009(769874070)5/9/2017 9:35:50 PMhttp://jbhs.sbmc.org/~esmith/AP_Projects/Social%20norm%20project.doc