#cultural-norms

#cultural-norms

If you're in Germany long enough you'll discover another common rule that has serious reverence for Sunday, legally speaking. It's called "Sonntag Ist Ruhetag," or Sunday is rest day. If you factor in the German national love for regulations and bureaucracy, it's easy to see how peaceful downtime has become a matter of law. At first, it felt like a little quirk to get used to, but the more I experienced it the more it revealed about my inner mindset.

Our brain is constantly assessing risk and safety. Being judged, rejected, or demoted within a group can register as a threat to belonging, something that, for most of human history, meant a threat to survival. Thus, silence may merely be an intuitive default response while the brain assesses the safety of the social situation. When we sense danger, however subtle, say an unpredictable leader or a dismissive tone, the amygdala becomes alert, and the brain shifts into a state of heightened vigilance and self-protection mode.

Every family gathering began the same way when I was a kid. I would open my grandparents' front door, and the smell of tamales, turkey, rice, and the best of our Mexican-American world would welcome me at the doorstep. I loved the laughs, food, and family, but before I could settle in, I had to brace myself for the greeting ritual.

What's your favourite thing about yourself? Stylist's Love Yourself campaign asked over 400 women that, and published eight pages of their answers. People mostly picked low-key, quite specific stuff I can cook something out of nothing; I'm really strong; I can talk to anyone; I've got an excellent bum and it was lovely, and touching, to see women affirm what they like about themselves.

In Japan, locals will often hide their shoulders, décolletage, or both. So long as you're avoiding low cut tank tops with thin straps, you're already off to a good start.

The legal drinking age in Turkey is 18, and all establishments serving alcohol must be licensed. Selling alcohol is prohibited between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.

While Miss Manners recognizes the challenges of enjoying food during lengthy performances, she emphasizes that eating in an opera house is not generally acceptable behavior.

In Germany, punctuality is not just appreciated; it's a crucial social norm. If you want to integrate smoothly, being on time is imperative.

In the U.S., parents enjoy vast freedom in naming their children, but at least 11 specific names are legally banned across various states due to court rulings.

"Sauna is individual. If you have a towel or your swimsuit or if you are naked, it's up to you," says Svante Spolander, co-founder of Sweden's Bastuakademien.

When men step outside these prescribed roles or question the expectations placed upon them, society deploys powerful linguistic weapons to bring them back in line.

As the beauty trend takes off, it raises questions about societal beauty norms and the lengths individuals go to in order to meet them.

"The word still kept recurring in conversations about bodyfeeding more and more often as my nursling grew older. The implication...is that there is a period of time in which nursing is acceptable and expected."