Chiang 1

Mikael Chiang

Wosick

Sociology 1

24 April 2022

Reaction Paper I

Step 1: For my field site, I went to a coffee shop. I went to the Starbucks on campus

(next to the Biological Sciences III building). I chose this location because I frequently

pass by this particular Starbucks when parking and walking to my classes on campus.

While brainstorming, I thought of going to one of the libraries on campus, since there are

many social norms in a library (ie. staying quiet, not interacting with other students in the

library, doing homework, or putting on headphones when listening to music). However, I

did not want to break any rules and disrupt the learning environment for the students.

Some students may be rushing to finish assignments, others may be studying for an

important class, and I would not want to break their concentration. By disrupting them, I

may be banned from the library or receive negative consequences as a result of my actions.

When discussing other possible locations with my breakout group on Zoom during

discussion, we thought about telling stand-up comedy jokes outside the library. Although a

positive activity that induces positive reactions, I may personally have trouble because of

social anxiety. I also thought this would be a good idea for this particular assignment

because it would affect a large group of people at the same time, and I could observe their

behavior and how they respond to this strange action.

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When thinking about ideas for the coffee shop, I thought of breaking the norm by

sitting down and talking to someone. Everyone who sits outside the Starbucks at the

Biological Science III building are studying either by themselves or they already have a

friend they are working with. People seem to just grab their coffee and find a table to

quietly work on their homework or projects. The problem with breaking this particular

societal norm is that students may be rushing assignments or projects, and I would not

know their particular circumstance. Some people may not enjoy another person coming to

disrupt their alone time, so I decided against this idea.

Finally, I came to the conclusion that I can do something good for someone to

break a social norm, not just to do something to get a strange or negative reaction out of

someone in public. Instead of interrupting someone else’s work or breaking any rules, I

wanted to make a positive change in someone’s life.

Step 2: At the location of my field site, I stayed for an hour and observed the

behaviors of students walking around the coffee shop and also how they interacted with

each other if they brought a friend to study with. I went on Friday, April 22nd at 3pm,

when I predicted that most students would be out of class and either stay home or grab a

coffee before they go. It sounded like faint chatter amongst the 13 people sitting at the

tables, and also birds chirping in the background since it was outdoors. It smelled slightly

like freshly brewed coffee, but the scent wasn’t overpowering. It was very sunny outside

and the weather was nice, so more people came outside.

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There was a line of 15 people waiting to get coffee, and nine tables were occupied.

Six out of the 13 people were seated by themselves, and then there were 2 groups of two

people sitting together. There was only one group of 3 people. One of the duos sat close to

me and I could overhear their conversation. It seemed like they were holding an interview

for some sort of position. The trio sat somewhat close to me and they seemed like students

of similar ages sitting together to study. Some social norms that occur near a coffee shop

on a university campus include respecting the Starbucks workers, spacing out from one

another to give another person space to work/interact with their friends. There are also

unspoken rules about keeping talking to a minimum in order to not disturb the people who

are working around them. I know about these norms because people will give you strange

looks if you are talking too loud in a public space with other people working, and I

personally would have preferred to have a more quiet environment if I were working in

that location.

At the Starbucks on the day I was there, everyone was following the norms of

working in a coffee shop. The individual(s) that caught my attention were the interviewer

and interviewee. They followed societal norms very closely and conformed to their

respective roles. The interviewee waited until the interviewer asked them a question, and

they responded to the best of their ability. As I witnessed them leaving, they shook hands

and the interviewer asked if the interviewee had any further questions, and that they will let

the interviewee know the results shortly. This follows a very standard interview process

between an employer and someone trying to get the job at a company.

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Step 3: The specific norm I chose to break was giving other people space to work

by themselves. Because I didn’t want to disrupt another person’s workflow, I opted for a

more positive “deviant behavior”. I bought coffee for someone who was sitting by

themselves. It was very difficult trying to decide whether a person liked coffee or not, or

the type of coffee they liked, so I chose one of the most popular Starbucks drinks: iced

caramel macchiato. It was slightly warm outside, so I decided on an iced drink. Since I

worked at Starbucks before and I have observed the amount of people who purchase

different types of drinks, I found that caramel macchiatos were extremely popular. I got the

idea to purchase a drink for someone because I’ve witnessed people “paying it forward” at

the Starbucks drive thru that I worked at. It was a small but simple act for people, and it

always shocked them to find out that a random person wanted to make their day. Although

many people do this, it is not the norm, so I considered it to deviate from normal societal

standards.

I chose this norm because it was more positive than the other options I thought of,

such as being loud in a public environment or trying to become friends with someone who

is working by themselves alone. When I approached the person, I asked them if they

wanted a cup of coffee that I bought for them. They looked at me awkwardly and hesitated

before agreeing to it, since it isn’t a regular occurrence that a random person would buy

you coffee. They jokingly asked me if it was for a special occasion, and I had to convince

them that I was just doing it because I wanted to do something kind for people. Then, I set

the coffee down and told them to have a nice day, and went back to working at my table

near them. I then saw them pulling out their phone to take a picture of the drink, and typing
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into their phone. I would assume that the person has not witnessed an act like this before,

and wanted to notify their friends or family about this strange act of kindness.

Personally, I felt awkward because it is an unspoken rule to not interact with the

people around you in a coffee shop when they are working by themselves. However, I

wanted to make someone’s day through this assignment, even if it was something small.

Although awkward, I felt good being able to make a slight positive impact on a stranger’s

life. I don’t think breaking this norm sanctioned any rewards or punishments for me

personally, but I felt rewarded doing an act of kindness for someone else.

Step 4: Honestly, it felt creepy to sit and observe people for an hour at a coffee

shop, but I learned a lot about the way people interact with one another. Since it is usually

unspoken, I had to think about the norms that were already set in place by society in

different locations, and how people conform to different roles. For example, when I do

work in a coffee shop, I always purchase my drinks and immediately sit down away from

other people to give them space to work comfortably. No one approaches me in public and

I don’t approach anyone.

I think sociology is a lot like other sciences, in which people are discovering rules

to norms that have always existed. Perhaps I would not consider social observations as a

career because I don’t enjoy staring at people for hours in a day, but I found it very

interesting that so many people follow these unwritten and unspoken rules in public,

whether it is in public transportation, in a restaurant, in a library, or even in class.

Wherever there are groups of people, humans tend to conform to the rules other people

have set up and follow their example.

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When deviated from this behavior, people would either give them strange looks as

a social cue or circumvent any contact with them to avoid the unwanted attention. Other

times when people become violent in a social setting, police officers may become

involved.

Breaking a law is similar to these unspoken rules of society. Although people do

not study laws closely, most people know about the main rules, such as following traffic

regulations, driving over the speed limit, pirating content, underaged drinking. People

don’t typically ask why a law is in place, but it is usually beneficial for the public. For

example, if someone began to shout in a library, it wouldn’t be a broken law, but it deviates

from the norm and disrupts people’s daily lives.