

There are a number of influences on social norms that need to be taken into account when considering the social norms definition:ĭifferent cultures and subcultures are going to have different social norms.įor example, it is common in Southern Europe to stand much closer to strangers than in the UK. is the violation rude, eccentric, abnormal or criminal? With this definition, it is necessary to consider the degree to which a norm is violated, the importance of that norm and the value attached by the social group to different sorts of violation e.g. Think and behave like everyone else break these norms so are often defined as abnormal.

Norms areĮxpected ways of behaving in a society according to the majority and those members of a society who do not Their behavior may be incomprehensible to others or make others feel threatened or uncomfortable.Įvery culture has certain standards for acceptable behavior, or socially acceptable norms. Violation of social norms is a definition of abnormality where a person's thinking or behavior is classified as abnormal if it violates the (unwritten) rules about what is expected or acceptable behavior in a particular social group. Violation of Social Norms Violation of Social Norms Instead, any specific abnormal behavior may be unusual, but it is not unusual for people to exhibit some form of prolonged abnormal behavior at some point in their lives, and mental disorders such as depression are actually very statistically common. This definition also implies that the presence of abnormal behavior in people should be rare or statistically unusual, which is not the case. With 69 is abnormal, and someone with 70 normal? Who decides what is statistically rareĪnd how do they decide? For example, if an IQ of 70 is the cut-off point, how can we justify saying someone The decision of where to start the "abnormal" classification is arbitrary. This would make it common but that does not mean it isn’t a problem. Depression may affect 27% of elderly people (NIMH, 2001). Some characteristics are regarded as abnormal even though they are quite frequent. left-handedness) have no bearing on normality or abnormality. Many rare behaviors or characteristics (e.g. Conversely, high IQ is statistically abnormal, but may well be regarded as highly desirable. For example, obesity is statistically normal but not associated with healthy or desirable. However, this definition fails to distinguish between desirable and undesirable behavior. The statistical approach helps to address what is meant by normal in a statistical context.

For instance, one may say that an individual who has an IQ below or above the average level of IQ in society is abnormal. With this definition it is necessary to be clear about how rare a trait or behavior needs to be before we class it as abnormal. Under this definition of abnormality, a person's trait, thinking or behavior is classified as abnormal if it is rare or statistically unusual. Statistical Infrequency Statistical Infrequency EXAMPLE: The cause of the Civil War was slavery.Definitions of Abnormality Definitions of Abnormality In reality, the problem or issue may have been created by a number of causes. What is a faulty logic?ĭEFINITION: This occurs when a single cause is assumed to have created a problem or an issue. Confusing Cause and Effect is a fallacy that occurs when someone claims that because two things typically occur together that one causes the other. Fallacy is when someone makes an argument but the argument is based on false or illogical reasoning. What is the error of confusing cause and effect?Ĭonfusing Cause and Effect is a type of fallacy. Like the post hoc ergo propter hoc fallacy, this fallacy is guilty of trying to establish a causal connection between two events on dubious grounds. In general, the false cause fallacy occurs when the “link between premises and conclusion depends on some imagined causal connection that probably does not exist”. Why do people use the false cause fallacy? Now, we have got the complete detailed explanation and answer for everyone, who is interested! This is a question our experts keep getting from time to time.
