Social norms are informal rules that govern behavior in groups and societies. They touch almost every aspect of our lives.
Academics like to use this comparison to explain the concept: just as grammar is a set of regulations that governs the structure and organization of language, social norms regulate the structure and organization of people, and, again, just as grammar shapes how we communicate and understand language, social norms shape how we behave and interact with others.
Sociologists talk about social norms motivating people to act, economists explore how they influence market behavior, and legal scholars view them as alternatives to laws, and while their words make sense, if we deconstruct these systems enough, they can begin to look silly.
Recently, Reddit user Irish-Springs made a post on the platform, asking people to share what social norm they find pretty weird when they think about it, and it has already received over 5,300 comments, many of which raise some hilariously valid points.
#1
People's absolute horror about women breastfeeding in public.
Oh, I am sorry, Karen. I am giving my baby substance, not trying to attract your 12 year old son.
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1point
#3
The expectation of tipping for certain jobs, as a substitute for paying employees a higher wage.
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1point
#5
Showing excessive gratuitous violence is fine, and will get you at most a PG-13 rating, which most people will think is too strict anyways. But show even one uncovered booby and people will lose their minds.
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1point
#6
The absurd obsession the US has with the flag and the "reverence" surrounding it. It's a godsdammed piece of fabric. Actually, US patriotism as a whole.
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1point
#7
Working 40 hours a week. It’s actually insane that we all put up with it.
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1point
#8
Forcing people in their teens to decide on a career with the implication that they'll do it for the rest of their life and sealing the deal by putting them into so much debt studying for said career that they're pretty much enslaved to it.
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0points
#9
Forcing or encouraging a child to hug a family member that has known them since their birth but the child doesn't have any sort of bond with said family member.
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0points
#13
Everybody hates being sung happy birthday and everybody hates singing happy birthday, so what the hell are we doing here?
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0points
#14
Asking people how they're doing as a matter of courtesy when you truly don't care and are hoping they just say "good hbu" in response.
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0points