Norm Breaking Social Norm Experiments

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In the United States, we value personal space. For my norm-breaking assignment, I conducted an experiment that violated my family and friends' personal space. First, I violated their personal space in shared areas, such as the living room and dining room. In these areas, you expect to be near family and friends. But I would sit/ stand mere inches away from my family. I spoke closely to their faces and sat, touching their shoulders, on the couch at the dinner table. My family felt confused as to why I was so uncomfortably close to them. They would step back from me or scooge over to have more personal space. After repeatedly doing this, they of course caught onto me. I would be interested in seeing the different results of this experiment if done with strangers. But it was still fun to see my family react to this behavior. …show more content…
In general, individuals who violate the norm may face disapproval, discomfort, or even confrontation from the target individual and surrounding bystanders. These social sanctions are typically created and enforced by societal norms and expectations regarding appropriate interpersonal behavior. These reactions serve as informal forms of social control, signaling to the violator that their behavior is inappropriate and potentially disruptive to social harmony.

As a small caucasian woman, most people would not feel threatened by me invading their personal space. This would not be the same case if the experimenter was a large male, a person covered in tattoos, a homeless person, etc. People stereotype these certain individuals as “suspicious” or a “threat”. The sanctions they face could be more serious, such as being screamed at, physical confrontation, or even having the police called on

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