Peculiarities Of Social Norms

This chapter contains foreign and local literature related to Social Norms. The researchers used the descriptive method for it is particularly appropriate in the behavioral sciences.

FOREIGN

Social norms are the study of a human’s behavior. It started as an experiment on fisherman on the sea and fisherman on the lake and it goes to show that sea fisherman has much greater trust and have more teamwork than their counterpart lake fisherman. (Klein, 2014)

Changes in social norms can have different results if it is individual-level or community-level. Many researchers state that there are only two stages of change, motivation, and action (Brug et al 2005). This may be the reason why the stages of change or transtheoretical model’s popularity is declining (Kok and Ruiter 2014). Change in behavior will not always be progressive.

There are three general considerations in measuring social norms. First, beliefs about others that deal with the respondents’ beliefs about the social expectations in their reference group. If one believes in the thought that the majority is on par with, then he/she is under the influence of a social norm. The second general consideration is identifying the reference group. Some people can matter over others. Choice of the reference group is crucial for the data. Anticipated Reactions of Others in the Reference group is the last general consideration. Social approval and disapproval are useful indicators of social norms.

Introductory Sociology and Anthropology: A Pedagogy

Social norms, this term is often used to describe situations in which there is a common behavior to a group of people. However not every common behavior is not a candidate for the term. No one can describe a family get-together as a social norm. This term is reserved to describe those similar behaviors within a group that might have been otherwise, and that is, a behavior that differs from a much bigger population. Social norm cannot be explained simply as the same behavior of a group but it is explained as a consequence of optimization in a group’s physical environment. (Postlewaite, 2010)

The most powerful, effective, and useful social psychological ideas are the triumvirate of imitations, social norms, and conformity. Social norms are the foundations of a culture of language and everything a person experience in life and these are a few lists of fundamental elements connected to human life; marriage, traffic control, prejudice, and many more; this list is endless.

Our human organism is what formed social norms. The foundation of social norms in imitation and social learning are so common to every primate and specially developed within us humans. Our well-developed brain structure support awareness; mirror neutrons and our human language capacity are fundamental to social coordination. (Crandall, 2015)

Fairness

Economists have invented a game that is called the ultimatum game. The people who run the game give some money to two players, both are informed about the rules that bargaining is not allowed. The first player is instructed to offer some of his money to the second player. The second player may accept the amount and he can keep what is offered, and the first player keeps the rest. But if the second player rejects the offer, neither player gets any money. Using this assumption about choice, economists predict that the first player should offer a penny and the second player should accept.

But this is not what happened. Offers are usually made between 30% and 40% of the total money while offers that is less than 20% are often rejected. (Camerer, 1995)

Social psychologist Robert Cialdini tried to find out why do people litter everywhere? He places flyers under the windshield wipers of cars and waited to see what drivers would do with them. Cialdini made an arrangement to an associate that before drivers are about to reach their cars, an associate would pass by them pick up another flyer and throw it in a trashcan. Those who have seen the responsible behavior, almost none threw them on the street. And those who have not seen the responsible behavior, over one-third of the drivers threw the flyers on the street. (Cialdini, 1978)

Introductory Sociology and Anthropology: A Pedagogy

This text elaborates on many aspects of sociology in the Philippines. Here, it is stated that ‘the whole idea of culture is that it provides a blueprint for living, a pattern to follow’ (David B Brinkerhoff and Lynn K. White, 1988). There is a powerful force in the lives of all people, which is culture. Its content is ever-changing and it shapes and guides people’s view of reality. It determines how we do things in a certain way and influences what we love and hate. It provides proper conduct for living in society.

Understanding Culture, Society and Politics

There are many differences among people in society due to culture. There are also differences among people based on social characteristics and qualities which are social differences. It can create discrimination among people on the basis of their background. If in a society, individuals with high status are given more respect compared to individuals who are struggling financially. Social differences can create a lot of problems in society because discrimination and prejudices will always result in inequality, inferiority complex, and others.

LOCAL

Humans have lived and started their lives in the Philippines long before even the earliest Filipinos arrived starting from the caveman till now and originally, the Philippines was populated with competing indigenous tribes with their chosen leaders (king and queen). In 1521, Spain came to the Philippines, led by the explorer Magellan to claim the island of the Philippines for Spain (1565) to start a civilization. At the capital known as Spanish East Indies which is now known as manila (1571). At the same time, Religions were made known throughout the Philippines, and free education followed (1863).

Pilipino Culture was a blend of different country traditions such as Spanish, American, and Japanese which gravely influenced our way of living. We Filipinos are known for always having fun and having a good time, which includes going out together to sing. Many Festivals were posted to the Filipino calendar, many of which are combined costumes of rituals and the ideology of today. (Espineda, 2013)

Ethics

1. Such information, record, or document must be kept secret in the interest of national defense or security or the conduct of foreign affairs.
2. Such disclosure would put the life and safety of an individual in imminent danger.
3. The information, record, or document sought falls within the concepts established privilege or recognized exceptions as may be provided by law or settled policy or jurisprudence;
4. Such information, record, or document comprises drafts of decisions, orders, rulings, policy decisions, memoranda, etc.;
5. It would disclose information of a personal nature cohere disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy;
6. It would disclose investigatory records compiled for law enforcement purposes or information which if written would be contained in such records, but only to the extent that the production of such records or information would (i) interfere with enforcement proceedings, (ii) deprive a person of a right to a fair trial or an impartial adjudication, (iii) disclose the identity of a confidential source and in the case of a record compiled by a criminal law enforcement authority in the course of a criminal investigation or by an agency conducting a lawful national security intelligence investigation, confidential information furnished only by the confidential source, or (iv) unjustifiably disclose investigative techniques and procedures; or
7. It would disclose information. The premature disclosure of which would (i) in the case of a department, office or agency which agency regulates currencies, securities, commodities, or financial institutions be likely to lead to significant financial speculation in currencies, securities, or commodities, or significantly endanger the stability of any financial institution; or (ii) in the case of any department, office or agency be likely or significantly to frustrate implementation of a proposed official action, except that subparagraph shall not apply in any instances where the department office or agency has already disclosed to the public the content or nature of its proposed or where department, office, or agency is required by law to make such disclosure or its own initiative prior to taking final official action on such proposal. (Labata, 2015)

Reciprocity

Pride is not an exaggerated opinion of one-self arising from self-love. It lies in drawing one’s strength solely from oneself. Ideally, a relationship of availability must include an element of reciprocity. However, the intersubjective relationship does not mean that reciprocity may demand such a relationship. (Bernardo, 2016)

Filipino Experience of Gender Inequality

It is the situation between sexes that Max Weber defined as Herrschaft. Sexual dominion obtains, nevertheless, as perhaps the most persuasive ideology of our culture and provides its most fundamental concept of power.

The reason men dominate women is that the latter is said to be the weaker sex and that their role in life is nothing but domestic by nature. Their world revolves around the house doing daily chores of cooking, cleaning, laundering, taking care of children, and serving their husbands. (De Beauvoir, 2015)

According to Juliet Mitchell that women constitute half of humanity. But why do they have to suffer inequality? Women are essential and irreplaceable. Therefore, in their economic, social, and political roles, they are marginal. (Bernardo, 2016)

CONCLUSION

The Basic Ecclesial Community had emerged from different places in the world, in Latin America, in Africa, and in the Philippines. It is a pastoral response to the scarcity of priests. The need to localize the church so that people may be more active in the church is another reason why this group emerged in the church. This is strengthened by forming catechists and lay leaders who would instruct the people and build up a community that would be gathered to worship by Bible Service and Holy Mass.

When Vatican II took place other BEC groups emerged from different places and cultures. Local churches find BEC as a helpful tool for realizing the invitation to active participation by the Second Vatican Council. Moreover, they also recognized that through these groups the church will fulfill its mission to be a sacrament of universal salvation (Paul VI 45) because it attends to the specific ecclesial and social needs of people. Thus, many local churches that adopted this program had seen BEC as a promoter of active participation in the lay faithful to the life and mission of the church.

Before the Philippines was conquered by other countries, it already has social norms for different social classes. When the Philippines was conquered, many countries introduced many practices and beliefs that we later adopted. Philippines’s social norms is a blend of norms inspired form different countries’ beliefs and customs

This kind of experiment about social norms is to challenge some widely held understandings of rationality, choice, and freedom, and to use that challenge to develop some conclusions about human behavior and also the appropriate domain of law.