Breaking Social Norms

For most people, purposeful violation of social norms can be an uncomfortable and stressful experience, regardless of whether the violation is positive or negative. In order to lessen potential discomfort, I chose to break a social norm in a positive way: bringing homemade chocolate chip cookies for everyone—excluding myself—in my math class. Although there are no rules explicitly stating that students are not allowed to bring treats, it is not commonly socially acceptable to bring food to school without a given purpose or event, thus this can still be considered breaking a social norm. In breaking this social norm I had to complete a couple of preliminary steps. First, I had to make the cookies. This wasn’t a problem nor an inconvenience, as my roommates and I had already planned on making a batch for ourselves. On Tuesday night we baked them, and the following morning I put a ziplock bag full into my backpack, in order to transfer them safely from my room in John Pugh Hall to the Egan building where my math class is held.

Only one classmate didn’t take a cookie, politely declining due to her personal decision to not eat sugar. The professor took one, and then the rest of the class, all males, silently and somewhat awkwardly partook. After taking a bite, however, their expressions shifted either into smiles or satisfied head nods, giving their compliments, thankful to receive the unexpected gift. Even the girl who refused thanked me for the gesture, reacting similarly to the others despite not directly benefitting. Altogether their reactions were not unexpected as I anticipated an initial apprehension to free food, while in turn expecting them to change their minds after tasting them. For those reasons, I would conclude that I was not treated as a deviant, however, that doesn’t mean I didn’t feel like one at