Description of the RAOKs: Norm Violation, Reactions, Sanctions

Think of the topics that we cover this semester in our Sociology of Deviance course: crime, mental illness, substance abuse, and so on... Generally, this is the way we think of deviance – from a distinctly negative perspective. You may have been asked in an Intro Sociology class to “break a norm” and then observe the reactions of those around you. However, for purposes of this assignment, your task is to go out and commit multiple random acts of kindnesses (RAOKs) for complete strangers — arguably, a form of “ positive ” deviance. In this paper you will be conducting a mini - ethnographic study, so to speak. The project is meant as a vehicle for you to develop a more thorough understanding of the nature, causes and conseq uences of various types of deviant behavior (even positive deviance) and the repercussions for “doing” deviance. While this paper does not require extensive book research it will require a good deal of time devoted to p reparation, p ersonal investigative s tudy, reflection, and writing. First (Research): Perform three random act s of kindness (RAOK s ) toward three different stranger s , on three separate occasions . [Your choice of RAOK will be the same in all three instances; however, you will perform them to different people and on different occasions]. Of importance: You must do the RAOKs alone: no classmates, family or friends with you or helping out. Your RAOK recipient s must be complete strangers (no friends/r oommates/family/coworkers/etc.) and at no point should you tell them about this experiment or assignment . Your RAOKs must be made in public settings that are open to everyone, and from which no one is excluded (in other words, not within a private club or closed group). As with all ethnogra phic research, you will need to make careful field notes in the form of written reactions and observations as soon as you lea ve the area, while things are still fresh in your mind. And what do I include in the paper? aper will consist of each of the following (at minimum) five sections , titled as below, and in this order : 1. Description/Introduction. a) Describe your RAOKs in detail : List the dates, times, exact locations, and the specific RAOK of each of your th ree RAOKs b) Talk about your RAOK motivation: Aside from being a requirement for this paper, why did you choose to do t his particular RAOK (e.g., you could perform many kind acts, why did you choose the one you did?) 2. Norm Violation. What are the spec ific norms (expected or appropriate behavior) for these people in this setting? Specifically describe your three RAOKs, and why they were deviant /norm - breaking in this context. What specific norm(s) did you violate? Explain. 3. Reactions / Sanctions. De scribe the specific reactions (verbal and nonverbal) of each person who received a RAOK and that you observed. Be sure to pr ovide a detailed analysis, including:  How did the recipient — and any others who witnessed the kindness — react? How did people com municate to you that you were doing something deviant? What was said? Changes in facial expressions / nonverbal behavior? Reprimands? Repercussions?)  How did the characteristics of the recipients of your kindness (e.g., race, gender, and ap proximate age), as well as your own, affect the situation?  If the situation was reversed, do you think you would have reacted differently? 4. Personal Effect. Describe how you felt during these three RAOKs, when you were being deviant. Was it easy or diffic ult? Why? 5. Sociological Analysis. What did you learn about deviance – specifically positive deviance - from doing this research? Be very specific as it relates to what you have learned in this course. Your paper should also include a conclusion, which summarizes your arguments and offers any additional commentary.