Breaking Social Norms

Words: 345
Pages: 2

Societies have ways of encouraging and enforcing what they view as appropriate behavior while discouraging and punishing what they consider to be inappropriate behavior; moreover, societies also have shared ideas of what is good and desirable when comes to social norms according to our textbook, Introduction to Sociology (Schaefer 62). Writer Bradley Wright, from his article The Prevalence of Social Norms, states that social norms are the core concepts of sociology, and it refers to the behavioral expectations that a social group holds for its individuals (Bradley). Ultimately, social norms tell people what they are supposed to do and how to behave in any given situation within our society. In contrast, breaking “formal norms” (laws) can result