Question

A. Explain and define the concept of a social norm.

B. In what ways are norms and institutions useful? Also, how can they be harmful? Consider the impact on individuals, and also on society as a whole.

Answer 1

A) Social norm is a pattern of behavior in a community, or culture, accepted as normal and to which an individual is accepted to conform.These are unwritten rules about how to behave in a particular place or community. They provide us with an expected idea of how to behave in a particular social group.

The idea of norms provides understanding of social influence in general and conformity in particular. These norms are the accepted standards of behavior of social groups.These groups range from friendship and work groups etc. Behavior which fulfills these norms is called conformity, and most of the time norms are powerful ways of understanding and predicting what people will do.

There are norms defining appropriate behavior for every social group. Norms provide order in society. It is difficult to see how human society could operate without social norms. Human beings need norms to guide and direct their behavior,in order to provide order and predictability in social relationships and to make sense of and understanding of each other’s actions.

B) It internalizes social discipline. Norms and values have an important role in institutions.These, of the several elements that constitute the social structure, are significant.

Social norms can result in positive or negative outcomes, these social norms can sometimes help people behave in ways that keep themselves and others safe.Misperceptions can be harmful when a person alters their own beliefs and behaviors based on a false assumption about other people's beliefs and behaviors. It emphasizes that individuals can change the social and cultural norms and society according to their behaviour. However, when individual  tries to modify the society  by habits and behaviour, it creates a social impact.

Societies exist because through the internalisation of norms, human agents monitor their behaviour in anticipation of sanctions, i.e., reward and punishment from other social actors.society and its institutions influence and condition individuals , but individuals can in turn make society  evolve and change its institutions. As this interaction continues over the course of generations, culture and individuals mutually shape each other.