Part I: A List of the Norms

1. Eating with spoon and fork

2. Chewing food quietly
3. Chewing with mouth closed
4. Girls wear pink and Boys wear blue
5. If there is a line, go to the back of the line instead of pushing or cutting your way
to the front
6. Dress appropriately for the environment you are in
7. Do not eat sloppily or quickly or use your hands unless it's finger food
8. Proper and appropriate haircut and colour. Hair must not be tinted or dyed.
9. The use of “po” and “opo” when talking to the elderly
10. Wearing proper school uniform
11. Following the “Walk left, stand right” etiquette in the escalator
12. Saying “thank you” when someone does something for you
13. Saying “please” every time you ask someone for a favor
14. Flush the toilet after use
15. Smile and shake hands when you meet someone
16. Saying hello when answering calls
17. Do not interrupt someone while they are talking
18. Do not talk to others while they are busy
19. Do not talk with food in your mouth
20. Do not be loud while eating at a restaurant to avoid disturbing other diners
21. Do not pick your nose and fart in public
22. Putting phone on silent in during class
23. Walk on the right side of the sidewalk
24. Raise your hand before talking
25. Facing the door in the elevator

Part II: Anticipated consequences of breaking norms

 Consequences of 5 social norms

1. Girls wear pink and Boys wear blue

One of the 5 norms from the list entails that girls wear pink and boys wear blue wherein the
anticipated consequences of breaking this social norm have resulted in diminishing gender
stereotypes.

In modern society, one stereotype emerges: pink is associated with girls and blue is associated
with boys (Paoletti, 2012). This propose that men's pink clothing is a means of diminishing
gender stereotypes and traditional sex‐role attitudes. In addition, pink has become highly
diagnostic of gender, such that “pink is for girls, not boys.” Consequently, a boy wearing pink
appears gender non-normative and is thus likely susceptible to being perceived as socially
deviant for how gender violation creates perceptions of deviance and as feminine and thus as
more fragile for perceptions of gender a typical male as weak because of a femininity stigma.
The association between color and gender in memory becomes stronger through experiences of
gender categorization by color.

2. If there is a line, go to the back of the line instead of pushing or cutting your way to
the front

The anticipated consequences of breaking this social norm have resulted in some getting pissed
off and annoyed as well. Personally, some people get really pissed off when other people think
they are better than everyone else, so they cut line while for some they get annoyed as others
taking the piss and pushing other people in order for them to cut their way to the front. In
addition, others have hated it when other people do that in a way that they waited for too long to
get into the line then expect someone to let them back in.

3. Dress appropriately for the environment you are in

Proper clothing is important in different specific environments like school, work, church and
other places. Though, the anticipated consequences of breaking this norm has resulted to
disrespect, distraction and realm of sexual harassment.
In terms of workplace or school, when you're off the clock it's fine to wear your comfy t-shirts,
slippers and pajama pants, but donning these things at work or school may lead to disrespect and
distraction from your colleagues in your workplace and from your schoolmates in school. Some
people might make jokes about your inappropriate attire or avoid you as much as possible.
Others may also have trouble taking you and your ideas seriously. Like for example, your
attention-grabbing cocktail dress might be perfect for a night on the town, but at work, it's too
distracting for your co-workers. In addition, its consequences may lead into the realm of sexual
harassment, creating an uncomfortable and possibly dangerous situation for you. Like for
example in the workplace, you may be feeling confident about your body and the way you look,
but you shouldn't show too much skin to people at work. Too-short skirts, sheer clothing and
shirts that expose your midriff can attract the kind of attention you don't want at the office. Co-
workers might think your provocative clothing is an invitation to flirt with you or ask you out on
dates. Even if this attention doesn't bother you, it can be distracting and a drain on your
productivity.

4. Chewing food quietly

The anticipated consequences of breaking this norm has resulted for some people with
misophonia find themselves irritated, angered or distressed by specific sounds, especially those
made by other people. This is also known as selective sound sensitivity syndrome, misophonia is
commonly associated with the hatred of sounds produced by other individuals such as chewing
and eating sounds, throat clearing, sniffing or tapping. In addition, people reported thinking
negative thoughts when experiencing trigger sounds, such as ‘I want to punch this person’, ‘I
hate this person’ and ‘are they doing this on purpose?'. As of that, extraneous sounds can be
extremely annoying for some people wherein they are unable to maintain focus on their thoughts
or conversation.

5. Proper and appropriate haircut and colour. Hair must not be tinted or dyed.

Lastly, the anticipated consequences of breaking this norm has resulted that there'll be people
who are gonna give weird looks and think it's stupid to dye your hair unnatural colors. The
consequences entails that some people are going to stare and make comments given that you are
still in school there are probably some people who will whisper and laugh behind your back. But
for some, the consequences of dyeing their hairs with unnatural colors fill their life of fun and
gain more self confidence.

Part III: Discuss the norms of another culture.

Several countries have their own norms like the United States of America. The following are the
social norms of the United States of America.

1. Polishing off your meal

To Americans, finishing a meal shows the host how much they enjoyed the meal. In the
Philippines, it signifies that you are still hungry and that they failed to provide you with enough
food.

2. Clothing style

Filipinos are often ordering the same t-shirt that the whole group will wear just for a friend
outing for the day to a special place, or for a dance performance at an event or school, or a team
doing a medical mission, etc. They wear uniforms in their place of employment, such as
teachers, bank tellers, supermarket employees, Government workers, etc. They like belonging to
a group or being identified as a group, while Americans prefer the independent look where they
are extremely independent, individualistic, and like to be different from each other especially in
terms of clothing style.

3. Using a knife and fork when eating

At the dining table, the utensils that Americans use are the fork and butter knife to keep things
simple and keep the costs of purchasing and cleaning flatware down, that’s all at most places. In
addition, you can get a spoon if you ask for it, but it is not usually provided unless you ask. So
basically, Americans learn to eat with a knife and fork. On the other hand, the ordinary Filipino
household uses spoons and forks and do not use knives when eating.

Part IV: Breaking a Norm

 Mater Ecclesiae School strongly believes that students need an ordered, structured
environment in which discipline is seen to be firm but fair. That is why the school implemented
rules which are based on courtesy, common sense, personal safety and are designed to support
learning. The highest standards of behaviour and dress are expected and the school will deal
firmly with students who behave unacceptably or fail to work satisfactorily. In one of the
activities in the subject Understanding Culture, Society and Politics, students will need to break
one social norm. Our group chose to break a norm that happens to be one of the school rules
which is “Students should have proper and appropriate haircut and colour. Hair must not be
tinted or dyed.” To achieve this deviant act, two members of the group dyed their hair blue. We
did this act in front of three groups of people specifically students, teachers and guards of Mater
Ecclesiae School in which they differ in age, status and level of knowledge about the school
rules and the consequences and responsibilities they hold.

Part V: Reactions

1) Describe your own and others’ reactions before, during, and after each violation.

Social norms are guidelines for expected behaviors, thus they set out our options for appropriate
behavior. They are the “should dos” and sometimes the “must dos” of society. In one of our
classes where we talk a lot about deviant behaviors and social norms in our society, the teacher
challenged us to do a social experiment. The social norm experiment involves violating a norm
and observing people's reactions for doing so. Before the violation or while preparing to do the
act, the group is actually excited about it, thinking of how people inside the school will react. In
relation to this, while the group is preparing (dyeing the two members’ hair), we noticed some
people outside the school giving us confused and curious looks probably thinking why we are
doing that kind of act when it is clearly inappropriate in Catholic schools. Then, during the act of
breaking the norm, the most common reaction we get is confusion. Students and other people
inside the school were confused if it is allowed or what will the school authorities do about it.
They are confused whether the change is for good or bad or whether they should remain and
accept the new regime. Aside from that, we also noticed that some students and personnels are
staring, staggering, amazed, and some even confronted us. However, some people, especially
kids, find the deviant act somewhat hilarious and ridiculous. Even after the situation, it seems
that people are still confused and in awe of what we did. The act left so many questions in their
heads. While others find it cool and interesting. However, this was the most reaction we got from
any of the three groups. We believe the fact that they reacted very minimally was due to other
social norms in our culture. It is not normal to freak out if someone breaks a social norm. It is
weird, and generally a little uncomfortable, but the norm in our culture is to remain calm and
collected through most non-emergency situations.

2) How did the reactions compare to what you had anticipated?

The reactions we anticipated from three different groups are exactly what we got from them. We
expected that most students would stare at us, talk about us, laugh, and give us confused and
questioning looks. At the same time, we also expect teachers to be shocked and have them
questioning about the situation. These reactions are what we exactly get from those people.
However, there is a bit different from the reaction we precede from the guards and what we
actually received. We sort of thought that aside from staring and getting confused, the guards
will somehow block the two members of the group from entering the school since they violated a
rule, but instead, they still let them in and just look at them not knowing what to say. At the end
of the day, when we asked them about their reactions, they mentioned that they somewhat
realized that it is part of school work and were stunned, hence the reaction.

3) Note any differences between the groups’ reactions and discuss possible reasons for
them.

The only significant thing among the reactions of the three groups is that teachers are more
emotional when it comes to this matter. It is only natural that whoever caught a student inside the
school with inappropriate haircut and colour will be astonished. However, while students and
guards can only stare and laugh, teachers are on a different level regarding this. Disbelief, worry
and amusement are very evident in their faces, all at the same time. They are extremely disturbed
that, for some, even if they probably realized that the act has something to do with one of our
subjects, they still bombarded us with so many questions about it just to confirm. For instance,
the possible reason for this is that teachers are aware of the school rules more than anyone. And
since they are teachers, they are more likely to be expected to abide and impose these rules so
they are very careful on this matter since it seems that whoever violates these rules might get
severe punishment/s. It can also suggest that students’ actions inside the school reflect on how a
teacher handles and discipline them, so it appears that a student breaking a rule is equal to an
impotent teacher, which explains the teachers’ reactions.

Part VI: Opinions

1) The Spotlight Effect of Social Experiment

In terms of Psychology, Arlin Cunic defined the spotlight effect as the term used by
social psychologists which refers to the tendency we have to overestimate how much other
people notice about us. In other words, we tend to think there is a spotlight on us at all times,
highlighting all of our mistakes or flaws, for all the world to see.

Based on the social experiment done by our group, the spotlight effect occurred when the
two boys whose hair was dyed blue, caused attention or became the center of attraction every
time they passed by on other students, teachers, and even employees. In fact, some of them
approached and said, “bawal yan”. Hence, it is safe to claim that all was well-informed that the
coloration of hair is prohibited according to the rules and regulations of Mater Ecclesiae
School. Due to this situation, there is surely a tendency that people would react when they saw
students who broke the rule for the spotlight effect highlighted that faults and shortcomings are
more noticeable by individuals since it was unusually done.

2) The Lesson

Upon the social experiment conducted, the group realized that being “new” was not easy.
The two members who played the role admitted that they were ashamed of what they have done
for many people and saw that they became different. Thus, it affects the person and the
surroundings. It is either one will adjust to the environment or the environment will adjust to
itself. However, to work things out, both are essentially needed. Adjusting to the environment
means having interaction with others to learn about their own culture. Meanwhile, environment
will adjust itself means accepting what is the unique trait about one. Yet, it is reminded that not
all people would accept you for who you are because sometimes, the doing may be normal for
one, but for others, it is deviant. Still, as mentioned by Sir. Denmark Rendimano in his interview,
one must be conformed based on the place where you are. In simple words, obey the rules that
are strictly implemented to maintain orderliness within the area, especially within the school.

3) Famous People who are Social Deviants

A. Duterte. Speaking politely is one of the social norms. However, numerous speeches of
President Rodrigo Duterte involve saying vulgar words or curses which leads to violating the
norms. According to President Duterte, “cursing is not a crime”. Indeed, the president is
considered to be a social deviant because for him, profanity is his own way of expression.

B. Sarah Lahbati. Recently, the actress posted a photo wherein she was wearing a see-
through dress for an event. Some netizens reacted that it was inappropriate especially when her
husband, Richard Gomez, allowed her to wear the “daring” dress. In relation to the social
norms, it is included that one should wear properly in accordance with the environment.
Meanwhile, Sarah Lahbati’s response is that she makes her own rules for it is her own body as
she quoted, “Ate.. My body, my clothing rules.” Indeed, this results in the actress being a social
deviant.