Norms, values, culture

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  • Created by: ZAKI2013
  • Created on: 02-09-13 19:54

Norms. Norms are the unspoken and unwritten rules of behaviour in everyday life. We learn them during socialisation, and they tell us what we should and shouldn’t do in particular situations. Sometimes they may be explicitly taught to children by their parents or others, but often are learned through observation, and also by trial and error by seeing what the reaction of others is. Norms differ widely among societies, and they can even differ from group to group within the same society. Different settings: Wherever we go, expectations are placed on our behaviour. Even within the same society, these norms change from setting to setting. Example: The way we are expected to behave in church differs from the way we are expected to behave at a party, which also differs from the way we should behave in a classroom. Different countries: Norms are place-specific, and what is considered appropriate in one country may be considered highly inappropriate in another. Example: In some African countries, it’s acceptable for people in movie theatres to yell frequently and make loud comments about the film. In the United Kingdom, people are expected to sit quietly during a movie, and shouting would be unacceptable. Different time periods: Appropriate and inappropriate behaviour often changes dramatically from one generation to the next. Norms can and do shift over time. In the United Kingdom in the 1950s, a woman almost never asked a man out on a date, nor   did she pay for the date. While some traditional norms for dating prevail, most women today feel comfortable asking men out on dates and paying for some or even all of the expenses. Values. Values are the beliefs that lie behind social norms. For example, one norm is that if you…

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