social convention
Expected public behavior
A social convention is an unwritten rule or customary practice that members of a society follow without formal enforcement—shaking hands when meeting someone, saying "bless you" after a sneeze, wearing black to funerals.
Conventions arise from collective habit rather than law or logic.
They vary across cultures and shift over time: Tipping was once a social convention that's now practically mandatory.
- firm handshakeTight palm-to-palm greeting
- handshakesMutual palm grips
- cheek kissLight facial greeting
- politenessCourteous, respectful conduct
- saying pleasePolite request phrasing
turn-taking · taboos · white lie · tone of voice · traditions · active listening · punctuality · courtesy · thank you note · bows · table manners · customs · decorum · body language · hospitality · holding doors · unwritten rules · greetings
- Classic RomancePride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, Emma, Romeo and Juliet
social conventionlaw
Binding principle or regulation
statute · criminal law · legal requirement · legislation · legal code
social conventionnatural law
Inherent moral principles
instinct · biological imperative · human nature · universal truth · logical necessity
social conventionnonconformity
Rejection of prevailing norms
unconventionality · transgression · rebellion · iconoclasm · eccentricity
social, convention, society, societal, socialize, socialization, sociable, socially, socialism