Breaking a Norm free essay sample

In our lives there are certain norms that we should uphold within our society. Whether petty or significant, these norms are a large basis for many of the ways we act, think and live. For this paper, I was given an assignment to go out and take on a challenging experiment to break a norm, detail my experience and record the reactions of observers. I figured what better setting to break a norm than downtown Atlanta at the Five Points Marta Station where there are a mixture of lots and lots of people to obtain reactions from. A norm, which is defined as a principle of right action binding upon the members of a group and serving to guide, control, or regulates proper and acceptable behavior (Webster dictionary, 2008). Within our culture, these norms are based on a general agreement of what are accepted as normal actions or mannerisms to the whole society. We will write a custom essay sample on Breaking a Norm or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Before I began this experiment, I felt nervous and a bit antsy. I went and performed my norm violation on an elevator at the Five Points Marta Station in downtown Atlanta around 4:40 pm on a cold, windy evening as I was on my way home from class. The observers were quite diverse from different backgrounds and subcultures (black, Hispanic white) comprised of school students and people coming from and going to work, going to other appointments or running errands and such. I got on and stood in the back of the elevator. I remained in the elevator for approximately 15-20 minutes going from Westbound to Northbound (up and down) entertaining different groups of observers getting on and off the elevator. I figured that I would be best off staying in the elevator for the time; this way there could be enough time for the appropriate variety of responses to the odd elevator behavior I was displaying. During that time I began talking into my pinky and thumb as though it was a cell phone. I held two conversations with myself in English and Spanish mixing it up. Unfortunately, Im not fluent in Spanish, but I took advantage of it to capture the attention of the riders. My terrible abilities would make a great formula for gaining attention from other people especially the Hispanic riders. Very clearly, I held my hand outstretched so as to let the observers know that I was indeed talking to myself and not into a cell phone. I wanted to make my performance believable as possible. I carried on a second conversation which interrupted the first call and I clicked over and had a conversation with my best friend as the first one was with my daughter. The reason I chose to violate this particular norm was because I’ve never seen anyone else do it and I was curious as to what would happen. It is hard for people to see that some people sometimes want to act different and aren’t afraid to let others know it in a manner that isn’t seen as being offensive. Yet, we’re manipulated like string-puppets on invisible strings and this unusual experience isn’t just limited to an elevator. In each situation we mindlessly follow the order of group norms and situational forces. Our behavior is under the control of unwritten social rules, unspoken norms, which govern appropriate elevator demeanor. In normality a person enters an elevator, pushes the button for their desired floor. Most people would agree that elevators are somewhat uncomfortable places. First, there are too many people crowded into a small space. Most people try to maintain personal boundaries, but quickly realize that their neighbor is often closer to them than they would like. Second, we were raised to think that talking to strangers is a horrible act that would inevitably place one in harms way. Therefore, elevators seem to embody a frugal vow of silence. Conversations on elevators are unthinking and usually carried out quickly in politeness. It is my belief that when a person is in this uncomfortable situation, they would rather say nothing or pretend nothing ever happened than acknowledges what is happening around them. In our culture, we have a number of norms that we abide by. There is an unspoken rule of how we should behave in an elevator. For example, it is proper to behave in a distinctive manner to which we have grown accustomed to. Have u ever noticed that people get in an elevator and everyone stops talking? Standard procedure is doors open, talking stops, a button is pressed, then everyone on the elevator watch the numbers, the doors open, get off on appropriate floor, and pick up on the conversation that they left off on. From this experiment I specifically wanted to know how people would react to me talking to myself in an elevator while maintaining my prestigious social appearance. My expectations were that people would laugh and look at me as though I was an insane woman or perhaps suffering from some type of mental illness. The first reaction was from an old woman standing closely on the side of me. She looked at me with a grin and inched closer to one of the students standing on the side of her. Two riders started to glance at me with a sort of confusion. People responded in ways that indicated to me that my behavior was deviant. People looked at me strange, laughed at me, made fun of me and probably more embarrassing things. Some people tried to figure out what I was doing and I saw a couple of them looking at me closely for the phone or earpiece I was supposedly talking into. The students talked about me. They laughed or made fun of me under there breathe. I was indeed talking to myself and not into a cell phone. Many people prefer to ride an elevator in silence. I’m absolutely for certain that my behavior made people feel uncomfortable. Unlike most people, who usually wouldnt break a norm[-0] in such an unrestricted area with a large quantity of complete strangers, I felt extremely comfortable doing it to the point that I forgot I was even trying to break a social norm[-1].