What Are The Differences Between Formality And Informality

Humans interact and go on about their daily life unknowingly following rules that society establishes as well as common social norms. Although this is a strange concept to grasp, this phenomenon is how society acts as a whole and how we as individuals are. Social norms are ways of acting, thinking, and feeling that exist outside a person but exert social control over each person they interact with. These are the rules that we abide by and are ingrained in our heads but what happens if one breaks that social norm.

Cultural differences are present wherever you travel to, you will come across cultural differences, and these can vary quite a bit, such as the language people use e.g. English people say "Chips" compared to Americans who say "Fries”. A businessman may find himself in the middle of cultural differences quite often and thus, will have to devise methods as to how to make sure no one is offended or that he is fully understood. Certain methods he would use to overcome such issues are greeting people on a last name basis. Also refraining on using most signed gestures, as they can vary in meaning quite greatly, for example, the English gesture to say

Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior in Company and Conversation is a detailed summary of the proper etiquette of the time. The book covers everything from actions to avoid in public to mannerism expected

The following paper is an analysis of different societal conditions that impact the individual’s manners and the civility of the interaction between members of the society. The studies that were reviewed in the following paper cover many variables and scenarios that may affect the way a person interacts with another member of society.

Formal norms are written down and normally have a formal punishment for breaking them. Laws, such as drunk driving, are considered formal laws. Informal norms are normally understood and can result in teasing or someone becoming angry if broken. For example, moving to a certain side of the stairs when someone else is using them is considered an informal norm. If you were walking down the in the middle of the stairs, someone might get mad if you do not move.

According to Veto Violence, social norms are “… values, beliefs, attitudes, and/or behaviors shared by a group of people.” Essentially, these are the unwritten rules that regulate and govern people’s behaviors and are created by society or a population. Examples within the United States would include: Not screaming profanities while in a quiet public setting or belching while at a nice dinner. Social norms can shift or change drastically from generation to generation. For example, smoking in the United States was once socially acceptable everywhere you went, but after research showed smoking caused numerous diseases, it became less socially acceptable over time. In contrast to social norms, laws are written rules, created by the government,

Politeness is able to show a person’s feelings towards others and awareness of a social custom. There are many purposes of politeness including: creating a public self image, creating solidarity, threatening people to send a negative message, not threatening people or upsetting them, indicating social relationship, showing awareness of social context, and power dynamics. The value of polite speech in a culture has the purpose of creating solidarity. Polite speech in a specific culture is very important and should be practiced as much as possible.

Norms are behaviors or rules that set forth what is expected of us as people and as a society.

A norm is defined as expectations, or rules of behavior that reflect and enforce behavior.(Henslin, 2009) When people are in public settings we expect individuals to behave in a certain way. For example when standing in line to see a show or to purchase an item we expect everyone to stand in a single file line. We expect individuals to wait their turn as they proceed to the front of the line. Another expectation or norm is we expect individuals to have dinning etiquette when eating in restaurants. We expect people to dine using the proper utensils. I thought about this example as I was pondering for an observation to perform. I decided that I would take a chance and visit a well respected restaurant in my area and break the norm

Norm violations are a form of actions that do not seem right to some people. Let’s say that you are in a public place, you are expected to act respectful and normal. Norms describes the expectation of a behavior. (James M. Henslin) One can perform a norm violation by doing the opposite of that, like invading personal space. There can be different reactions to violated norms which sociologists call sanctions. (Henslin) Mores, folkways, and values revolve around norms as well.

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 right and desirable when it 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. 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,” such as laws, can

I believe people of equal “status” respond to each other in the same way they are spoken to. With professors, I believe students try to be more polite than what the professor intends to be. I am not saying the professor is rude, but rather, not as consensus of the level of respect students have for them. There is a hierarchy of power and the person who is inferior tries to be even more cordial and respectful. Businesses that deal with rude customers do not respond in the same manner they are spoken to because there are consequences. The employee has more to lose than the customer, so they tend to respond in a nice, or even witty manner, but they avoid being rude. The way someone responds can also be affected by what language they are speaking. Some languages and cultures emphasize respect, politeness, and etiquette. If a person’s mother tongue focuses on this, they have been shaped into reacting a certain way. Nonetheless, people may talk back in the same manner they were spoken to if faced with a conflict. An argument can become even more intense if one person decides to talk back in a similar fashion they were initially

Norms are established rules of behavior or standard of conduct. There are various types of norms we observe every day in our society such as, Folkways: informal rules or everyday practices that may be violated without serious outcomes within a particular culture. Mores are firmly held norms with moral and ethical connotation that may not be violated without serious consequences in a given culture. Laws are formal, regulated norms that have been enacted by legislatures and are enforced by legal sanctions.

In addition to differences in pronunciation, vocabulary and grammatical structures among cultural groups, variations also exist in the rules for general discourse in oral communication, covering such specific acts as narratives and conversation. In communicating with one another, teachers and students naturally will follow the assumptions and rules governing discourse within their respective cultures. Discourse rules govern such aspects of communication as: opening or closing conversations; taking turns during conversations; interrupting; using silence as a communicative device; interjecting humor at appropriate times and using nonverbal behavior. Once again, an American student studying in the middle east, who would constantly interrupt the teacher in order to clarify the professor’s opinion, would be considered to be

manners one is supposed to have. Starting from one of the simplest examples such as asking a girl to