Deviation from social norms

• Deviation from social norms

  Definitions of abnormality
• Social norms

  • Norms created by society (people) that are the acceptable standards of behaviour set by a social group
  • People in the social group adhere to and follow these norms
  • Anyone who deviates from the social norms is seen as abnormal
• Explicit social norm


  A written rule/law, e.g. not using mobile phones when driving
• Explicit social norm violation

  • A depressed or agoraphobic person not leaving the house and not attending school, which goes against the written rule that children under 18 should attend full-time education
• Implicit social norm

  A norm that is not a written rule, but one that people tend to follow, e.g. eating dinner with cutlery
• Implicit social norm violation

  • A person with OCD performing compulsive behaviour like turning a light switch on and off many times, which goes against the norm of just turning it off once
• Social norms vary across cultures, situations, ages and gender - what is acceptable in one context may not be in another
• The degree to which a social norm is deviated from and how important society sees that norm as being is an important consideration
• Strengths of defining abnormality by deviation from social norms (DSN)

  • Practical applications - DSN focuses on observable behaviour, allowing identification of those whose behaviour deviates from norms, which can enable intervention and support
  • DSN takes into account cultural, historical and situational differences in behaviour, in line with diagnostic manuals like DSM-V
• DSN does not account for those who have moved cultures, as behaviours viewed as abnormal in one culture may be seen as normal in another
• Limitations of DSN

  • Can be used as a means of social control, as social norms are subjective and constructed by society to exclude non-conformists
  • Cannot be used to define all elements of mental illness, as not all abnormality can be solely defined by social norms (e.g. antisocial personality disorder causing distress to others)