Analysis of Social Norm Violation: A Personal Experience Essay

This essay recounts a personal experience of violating a social norm in a library setting by forgetting to silence a mobile phone. The author describes the embarrassment and confusion felt when the phone rang, disrupting the quiet atmosphere. The reactions of other students ranged from giggling and shouting to a gentle reprimand from the librarian. The essay explores the social psychology behind these reactions, noting that some people view norm violations as intentional disruptions deserving of punishment, while others are more sympathetic. The author concludes that reactions to norm violations vary and can be influenced by whether the violation is perceived as intentional or unintentional. Desklib offers a wide range of academic resources, including past papers and solved assignments, to support students in their studies.

Running head: SOCIAL NORMS
Social norms
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Social norm I violated
Social norm refers to the way society expects everyone to behave mostly in public places
according to Ashburn, Costenbader, Igras, Pirzadeh & Homan, (2016). Social norms are not
written down, but it is a matter of common sense. In this assignment, I will describe the social
norm I violated and people’s response at that particular moment. It is everyone expectation that a
library is a silent place, no one should stage any form of noise but concentrate on his or her
studies. Consequently, everyone’s phone is expected to be on silent mode or switched off. One
day I forgot to turn my phone on silent mode while entering the library. I sat on one of the chairs
in the middle of the library to start studying for the examination. Everyone was quiet, the only
thing one could hear is the footsteps of students entering and leaving the room. However, after
ten minutes of study, my phone started ringing with one of the gospel music as my ringtone.
Silence in studying places is a crucial social norm and, on this day, I found myself on the wrong
side of the norm
How I felt
When my phone started ringing, I felt embarrassed and confused. I looked on every way
to switch off my phone or set it to silent mode due to that embarrassment in reference to Fehr, &
Williams, (2018). My body was full of sweat because that everyday people do switch their phone
off while entering the library but I did not do it.
The reaction of people
When my phone rang with the loud ringtone while in the study room, every student in the
room turns their eyes on me. Some student started giggling about the matter. Apart from the
giggling, some student shouted at me to go out and switch off my phone because it was an

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interruption to their studies. Unluckily, the librarian was around the place I had sited; he slowly
walked towards me while smiling. Perhaps, he was smiling concerning the gospel ringtone I had
since it was in my local language. He directed me toward the door. At one time he whispered to
me to go out and switch my phone off.
The social psychology of the student’s reaction
People have mixed results when one breaks the social norm in reference to Higgs, (2015).
Some people think that the action is intentional because everyone knows there is a way of doing
things in particular places. For instance, in my case, some students felt that leaving my phone on
the loudspeaker was intentional and I wanted to disrupt people while studying. They said that a
deserved severe punishment for doing such action. However, there are group of people who
sympathize with my situation in the room. They argue that breaking social norms is a typical act
and people should not shout at the individual according to Platteau, (2015). For example, in my
situation, some groups of students were smiling while telling others to leave me it is a regular
issue. What I conclude from the condition that there are situations where one breaks social norms
intentionally or unintentionally, the challenge is that reaction of people differs.

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References
Ashburn, K., Costenbader, B., Igras, S., Pirzadeh, M., & Homan, R. (2016). Social norms
background reader. Learning collaborative: advancing research and practice on normative
change for adolescent sexual and reproductive health and well-being. Vol 3., pg. 45-98
Fehr, E., & Williams, T. (2018). Social Norms, Endogenous Sorting and the Culture of
Cooperation. Norms, 46, 39-87
Higgs, S. (2015). Social norms and their influence on eating behaviours. Appetite, 86, 38-44.
Platteau, J. P. (2015). Institutions, social norms and economic development. Routledge.