You will conduct an ethnomethodological “breaching experiment,” described in class. This experiment will require you to violate a social norm and record what happens in response to the violation. You will collect data, describe your experiment and discuss findings. FIRST STEP: Data Collection:You will select a norm that interests you (but NOT a norm whose violation would require a criminal act). This should be a norm that is part of normal routine.a. Go out and observe normative behavior. Meaning: Observe, and nothing else. Observe how this norm operates in everyday life. Pay attention to the details to understand how the norm functions and is regulated in everyday behavior. Record what the norm is and how it regulates behavior in the setting you observed.b. Violate the norm. Record how you chose to violate the norm. DO NO HARM.c. Observe the response (sanction) to your violation in the social setting. Describe the reaction of people around you. What were the sanctions for violating this norm? SECOND STEP: Analysis:Analyze what happened when you violated the normative order of this social setting. Try to use some of the sociological concepts we’ve learned so far. Discuss these topics:1. What is a social norm (in your own words)?2. What function does this norm fulfill?3. Why did people respond the way they did when the norm was violated?4. Were there sanctions for the violation? What kind? THIRD STEP: Discussion:Think about how this norm regulates social behavior. Answer the following questions:1. Did you experience any difficulty in purposely violating the norm? Why? 2. Would race, class, gender, or any other social status have affected how people react? Why?3. If you violated the norm continuously, what would be the consequences?

Breaching experiments are one of the most popular types of studies in undergraduate sociology classes. The practice involves going to a place and doing something that clashes with programmed social norms. The norms are generally things that don’t have to be taught, or if they are, they are accepted as something that is the natural or right way to do something.
When I did this assignment, I used the social norm of eating with utensils at an Italian restaurant.
I observed that, in general, people in the West eat different types of food with various implements. Some foods, like bread, are socially acceptable to eat with the hands, and it’s treated as strange to eat with a utensil. Others, like soup, require a spoon, and drinking from a bowl of soup is regarded as rude. Spaghetti is usually eaten with one or more utensils, like a fork or a fork and spoon, and to keep it clean and socially acceptable, it’s generally twirled around the fork.
So, to breach the social norm, I decided that eating without using my hands would be the most effective way to see reactions. This means that I would go to a spaghetti restaurant, and I would eat all the food like a dog eating out of a bowl. For my own sake, I chose a restaurant that I didn’t frequent often, so keep that in mind.
When I did my experiment, I ordered my food as usual, and the server didn’t think anything of it. When my food was brought, they asked me if I needed anything else, and I said, “No, this should be good.” Before they could walk away, I shoved my face into the plate and started eating.
I looked up and saw the server staring blankly at me. The reaction I got most often from people was general bewilderment. Most people didn’t say anything, ignoring me entirely, and just kept going about their day. The server didn’t come back after that until I was nearly finished with all my food. No one came to ask how I was doing.
Overall, I think situations like that make people uncomfortable, but they don’t offend; instead, they are seen as strange and weird, and people choose not to discuss them to avoid awkward interactions.