The concept of social norms. Their types and characteristics

Social norms are understood as nothing more than certain patterns and rules of behavior that have become entrenched in society. This consolidation occurred as a result practical activities, during which certain standards emerged, as well as models of behavior recognized as standard. Social norms of behavior determine how a person should act in certain situations. To some extent, they determine what a particular person should be.

Social norms are numerous:
- moral standards. One is good and the other is bad, one is good and the other is evil. As a rule, the sanctions in this case are public censure, as well as remorse;
- etiquette standards. These are communication norms, rules, and so on. They determine how a person should behave in society;
- They are enshrined in laws. Failure to comply will result in government sanctions;
- traditions and customs. They became fixed through long repetitions;
- political norms. As the name suggests, they regulate political life. These norms are enshrined in international treaties, charters, and so on;
- aesthetic standards. Applied to a work of art, human actions, and so on;
- Regulate relations within any organizations;
- religious norms. Contained in the sacred scriptures.

Social norms and sanctions

It is necessary that every member of society takes social norms seriously and follows them unquestioningly. First of all, this is necessary in order to protect the person himself and the entire society as a whole. Punishment for non-compliance with social norms includes various sanctions, which in this case can be very, very specific. We are talking about sanctions from the state. It all depends on the specific case and what social norms were violated.

Social norms and their features

All these norms in one way or another regulate those relationships that arise as a result of the implementation of socio-cultural, political and many other tasks that arise before the state, society and, of course, before the individual.

Social norms are regulators that establish very specific and clear frameworks for the behavior of all participants. Of course, these norms contain the same measures and commands. Social norms are distinctive in that they are not addressed to anyone, but at the same time they are addressed to everyone. No one can violate them with impunity. The regulatory influence in this case is aimed at achieving a certain state public relations. For this purpose, mechanisms of social coercion may well be used.

The better developed a society is, the better developed social norms are in it. The scope of their action is always Social norms are created within groups and are intended for these same groups.

From the above we can conclude that these norms help make interaction between people as effective as possible.

Social norms can be characterized by the following:
- they are of a general nature, that is, they cannot be applied only to someone individually;
- they indicate how a person should behave in order to be useful to society;
- Failure to comply with social norms must be followed by sanctions.

Finally, I would like to note that social norms are especially effective not when a person observes them only in order to avoid any sanctions, but when he personally realizes their significance and necessity.

In society, along with legal norms, there are social norms - general rules behaviors that are created by society itself, citizens and regulate their behavior and activities. These include norms of morality, ethics, customs, traditions, norms of external culture, political, corporate, etc.

Social norms- these are generally binding and objective necessary rules behavior, joint human existence, regulating the boundaries of possible and proper actions.

Social norms are characterized by the following main features:

1. They are general rules, that is, they are applied an indefinite number of times to all individuals whose behavior or activity falls under a given social norm. They act constantly.

2. Social norms regulate the volitional and conscious activity of people. Individuals must know them and be guided by them. This means that social norms are addressed to people who have reached a certain age and do not suffer from mental illness.

3. The implementation of social norms is ensured by citizens themselves, public organizations that apply negative measures to violators: moral or moral condemnation, exclusion from members of a public organization, etc.

4. The nature and content of social norms, their orientation are determined by the objective circumstances of the existence of a given society, the state of its economy, the material security of the population, the level of development of culture, morality, morality, historical traditions and customs, the mentality of the nation, and other real factors. For example, the social norms of a slave society are different from modern social norms, social norms European countries- from Asian, the rules of one religion from another.

5. Social norms tend to dictate positive behavior useful to people, corresponding to their interests.

They contribute to the progressive development of society.

Along with positive ones, there may be social norms in society that are directed against honest people and their respectable, conscientious behavior. Such norms include, for example, the rules of various criminal communities. They are condemned by the majority of citizens, do not exist openly, and are secret and local in nature. In the total number of social norms they occupy an insignificant place.

The peculiarity of social norms is that they are historically created by society itself, by people in the process of their relationships, and once created, they regulate their behavior.

A social norm can be characterized as a rule that permits, obliges, or prohibits some action or behavior of a person. For example, it is generally accepted that a young man must give up his seat to a woman or an elderly person on public transport. On the contrary, it is not customary, for example, to talk loudly, much less shout in public places, etc.

The presence of social norms makes it possible to control a person’s behavior in society and determine his actions as correct, that is, consistent with the rules of behavior, and incorrect, that is, inconsistent with these rules.

2. Rules of law in the system of other social norms

The main social norms are legal. They differ significantly from other social norms. This difference is as follows:

1. Legal norms, as a rule, are created by the state as government regulations that cannot be changed or canceled by citizens, public or other organizations. They can only be changed or canceled by the relevant government authorities.

Other social norms are created by people themselves, public organizations, and they can change or cancel them. These norms can be changed or repealed by the state if they contradict the rules of law.

2. The implementation of legal norms is ensured by the power of the state, and the implementation of other social norms is ensured either by society itself, by people, or by relevant social, religious and other formations.

3. In case of violation of the law, the state powerfully holds the offenders legally accountable and applies various penalties to them.

Violation of other social norms entails social pressure on the violators, which is taken either by the citizens themselves (for example, moral condemnation) or by organizations in accordance with their charters.

4. Rules of law are always expressed in certain written acts, for example, laws. Other social norms, for example, norms of morality and morality, are not fixed in writing, but are contained in the minds of people. Some non-legal norms, for example, the norms of public organizations, can be expressed in written charters.

5. The rules of law form a single hierarchical and interconnected system. Other social norms do not have such a system. They are divided into separate and independent groups that belong to different types of social norms. For example, there are norms of morality, ethics, customs, traditions, norms of public organizations, various religions, etc.

6. Rules of law regulate the behavior of citizens, public and other organizations, business structures, state bodies and even the state as a whole, i.e. they are universal in nature.

Other social norms mainly regulate the behavior of citizens and are not universal.

7. Rules of law regulate the most important, main social relations. Other social norms regulate less significant social relations, for example, the mutual behavior of citizens in public transport, at a meeting of members of a public organization, during worship, collective prayer, etc.

Legal norms are more stringent and categorical compared to non-legal norms, which are less defined and softer in nature.

Due to the fact that legal and other social norms are closely interrelated, are in the same system and are determined by the uniform social conditions of society, often the same human behavior is regulated by them simultaneously. For example, stealing someone else's property is morally reprehensible and is a criminal offense.

The following types of social norms are distinguished: 1).customs- these are stable rules of human behavior that develop historically as a result of repeated repetition, are preserved in the minds of people and are protected with the help of public opinion; 2). religious norms- this is a set of rules of behavior that express a certain attitude and worldview, based on faith in supernatural forces and the existence of God; 3). corporate standards is a set of rules of conduct that are established by a corporate organization to regulate relations between its members. Corporate norms must operate within the limits of the powers established by the state;

4). political norms- these are rules of behavior that are of a general nature, which are established and sanctioned by subjects of the political system for the formation and use of state power;

5). organizational norms- these are rules of behavior that regulate relationships related to organizational and production tasks.

Another classification divides social norms into the following types:

1) moral standards; 2) family norms; 3) ethical norms; 4) norms of traditions and habits; 5) business customs; 6) rules of etiquette.

Social norms, in addition, are characterized by the following features:

1) the subject of regulation is public relations;

2) subjects of social norms - people who are representatives of the social sphere.

The relationship between law and morality:

1) law and morality serve a common goal - improvement and ordering public life, regulating people's behavior, maintaining order, coordinating the interests of the individual and society, ensuring and enhancing human dignity;

2) law and morality help each other in regulating social relations, in forming an established legal and moral culture among people;

3) law obliges to comply with laws, and morality also strives to do the same;

4) morality acts as a value criterion of law.

Moral standards connected to all stages of the formation and social action of law. They also act as a significant factor in improving the legal system

From the moment of birth to this day, representatives of humanity have come up with many different rules, which help in regulating relationships in society, family, at work, etc. Some of them have grown into centuries-old traditions and customs. With the advent educational institutions and with the introduction of the subject of sociology, these rules and traditions began to be called social norms.

Concept

Social norms are a pattern of behavior accepted in society that functions as a regulator of relationships between people and communities of people. Examples of social norms can be seen in the everyday behavior of people in society.

Everyone knows, for example, that appearing naked in public is unacceptable, and in some countries is even punishable by imprisonment. This rule does not apply only to specially designated places for nudist meetings (exclusively in countries with a progressive democratic society), as well as establishments such as saunas. But even such places are divided by gender.

Before considering specific examples of social norms, it is necessary to determine their characteristics and types. Classification will help you better understand specific behavior patterns.

Emergence

The development of social norms is directly related to the development of society. The first community had enough rituals to regulate issues that arose in the process of living together. Ritual is one of the first social norms, which is an established order in a community for performing certain actions.

Customs are considered a more developed form of norms than rituals. Next after them come religious norms. Their formation occurs in the process of a person’s awareness of his insignificance in front of natural phenomena. Cults of various deities and worship of the forces of nature arise.

Along with customs and religion, moral principles appear. And with the emergence political system The first legal and economic norms are formed.

Classification

Let us highlight, speaking about the main types of social norms, examples of norms of international action. They are closely intertwined and participate in regulating several relationships at once.

One of the primary large-scale norms is political. They are expressed in various declarations and charters, regulate relationships in political sphere not only of one state, but also on an international scale. Examples of social norms of a political nature are the forms of power implemented in states. For example, in Great Britain the monarchy is a social norm.

Economic principles are the rules for the distribution of material wealth in society. That is, these norms give rise to social classes. Ideally, the principle of dividing equally should apply. Wage is an example of this type of norm. Economic rules, like political ones, can operate on the scale of several states and characterize financial and commodity turnover between them. Other types operate on a smaller scale, in specific social formations.

Types of social norms. Examples on a national scale

Legal norms are the main regulator of relationships in the state. They represent a set of rules, failure to comply with which results in punishment in the form of material penalty, administrative liability or imprisonment. If a teacher asks: “Give examples of various social norms of a legal state,” the answer can be given to the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation.

They regulate a person’s behavior in the society to which he belongs by birth or type of hobbies. If you are asked: “Give examples of social norms of this type,” then it is worth talking about the rules that a person develops during his life in certain circles. The state plays a major role in this formation. The more developed the culture of an entire country, the more cultural norms it has. For example, in some Muslim countries, a woman is not supposed to appear in society with her face uncovered - this is a cultural norm.

Social rules

Examples of social norms in society are diverse, but several global ones stand out. The largest communities are Religious norms serve to regulate relations not only within such communities, but also in relations with organizations and people who do not belong to the same religion. It is easy to find examples of social norms of this nature. The most common are wedding and funeral ceremonies for the deceased. The same type of norms applies to the relationship between the abbot of the monastery and the monks, the holy father and the parishioners of his church.

They are historical in nature. They form concepts of beautiful and ugly. These rules apply not only to a person, but also to his actions, as well as to works of art, animal species, etc. modern society aesthetic norms sometimes have a negative impact on a person, his self-confidence, and, accordingly, his place in life. This is due to stereotypical thinking about attractive appearance. As a result, a person who does not fit into the general framework with his appearance or behavior may not be accepted by a certain society. An excellent example of this is the fairy tale "The Ugly Duckling".

Examples of different social norms

There are also rules that are not tied to a specific society or state. These are the ones that form the concepts of good and bad. They are formed on the basis of specific behavior taken as a standard. Some are supported by legal documents. Basically, they are designed for a person’s conscience and his moral worth. Immoral behavior results in social condemnation and, in some cases, legal punishment.

The norms of customs and traditions are also historical in nature. They have been established for many centuries and represent patterned actions in certain situations. What would be the examples of social norms in this case? Customs imply the performance of any actions due to habit, and traditions are values ​​or a model of behavior accepted by society and strictly followed by its members. Customs and traditions are closely related to cultural norms.

Also, from various social norms, corporate ones are distinguished, which regulate relations between employees of the same structure or members of the same club of interests. Such rules are established by community members, and they choose and apply measures of influence on violators.

Rules in family relationships

Examples of social norms regulating family relationships are so diverse that it is very difficult to single out specific ones. The family is controlled by the state, religious organizations and society. Moreover, each side is trying to direct family relationships in its own direction. Sometimes so many rules have the opposite effect.

If the teacher asks: “Give examples of social norms that affect family relationships,” answer that these are legal and religious norms, moral norms, traditions and customs. However, do not forget that other rules also have a certain influence, since the family is a miniature state with its own political and economic laws. Perhaps it is for this reason that many young people of the current generation are in no hurry to start a family. When a person is told from all sides what he needs to do in order to look complete in the eyes of the public, the desire to take any action disappears.

Legalized social rules

It is not difficult to give examples of social norms regulating family relationships, which are enshrined in law. For example, a fundamental event in the life of a family is marriage. Legally, marriage is regulated by legal norms. They stipulate the procedure for marriage (submitting an application, setting a wedding date, issuing documents confirming Family status), as well as the procedure for the divorce process (application for divorce, divorce through the court, division of property, assignment of alimony, etc.).

Economic social norms also have a certain impact on family relationships. The family income depends on them, as well as the possibility of receiving social benefits. This is especially true for single-parent families. In many states they are entitled to additional financial assistance to solve financial problems.

These types of norms are based legislative framework, and their influence is determined by the ratio state power to the importance of the institution of family. For full development family relations such support is needed. But its selectivity often only hinders this development.

Regulation of family relationships by social norms

Customs and traditions have a great influence on family relationships. They begin their action with the decision of one of the couple to marry. Marriage proposals, engagements and other customs shape the concept of how a family should begin. And those who do not fit into these frameworks are often condemned by the public.

Religious norms also have a certain impact on human relationships. In the most widespread religion—Christianity—it is impossible to have children without getting married and creating a family. Otherwise, condemnation of the church will follow. These historical circumstances sometimes only interfere with the formation of a new family.

Let us give examples of social norms responsible for the behavior of spouses (moral norms). For example, cheating in marriage is unacceptable only from a moral point of view. This is not punishable by law (in democratic states). But public condemnation in this case will inevitably lead to the collapse of family relationships.

Examples of the impact of social norms on human character

A person’s character largely depends on the traditions of upbringing established in the family, as well as on the norms and rules that operate in the surrounding society. must be vaccinated from birth. This is the key to developing a child’s early age concepts of bad and good behavior.

The opinions of others significantly affect a person’s character. Having people treat you well adds confidence. And it often happens that a bad attitude is based solely on aesthetic standards. That is, a person is unattractive in appearance to society. This opinion of others can lead to embitterment and the formation of immoral principles.

Modern social norms

With the advent huge amount various public organizations there was a need to regulate relations between and within them. Corporate norms are the most recent type of social norms. As stated above, they are regulated by representatives of such organizations.

If you are told: “Give examples of various social norms that govern relationships in modern society,” what would you name as the first point? You can safely put corporate standards first. After all, without them it is impossible to imagine civilized relations.

Rules governing people's behavior and actions social groups, teams, organizations, in their totality constitute social norms. A social norm is a rule socially meaningful behavior members of society. A holistic, dynamic system of social norms is a necessary condition life of society, a means of public administration, organization and functioning of the state, ensuring coordinated interaction of people, human rights, stimulating the growth of the well-being of the people.

The system of social norms reflects the achieved degree of economic, socio-political and spiritual development of society; they reflect the quality of life of people, historical and national characteristics life of the country, the nature of government. The norms regulating social relations reflect and concretize the actions of objective laws, trends in social development, i.e. such laws that operate with natural-historical necessity. The objective nature of these laws is organically connected with their scientific understanding by people and their use in targeted social activities.

Social norms are also connected with the laws of natural sciences, with the very scientific and technological progress of society, of the entire human civilization.

Social norms cover various groups of norms that operate in certain relationships with each other. In approaches to the classification of social norms, both basic and additional, complex criteria can be applied. The scope of the norms, the very quality of the rules of conduct, incentives and guarantees for the implementation of the norms are taken into account. Social norms include economic, political, legal, moral, religious, aesthetic and other norms. In the process of regulating social relations, the active role of one group of norms is supplemented and adjusted by other social norms. The interaction of individual norms, groups of norms in unified system social norms reveals the complex properties of the components included in the system. The effectiveness of social norms is expressed in achieving and maintaining public consent of citizens, strong public order, and an atmosphere of fairness. social partnership and initiative, social responsibility, conscious compliance with standards by all citizens.

Social norms by their nature are a certain standard of behavior. When identifying types of norms, the method of understanding and regulating behavior and the forms of sanctions for non-compliance with norms are also taken into account. The concept of “social norm” includes more specific, detailed rules and rules of a broad nature that embody fundamental ideas social life which are called principles. More detailed rules are organically connected with the corresponding principles and are their manifestation in specific social relations and life situations.

Principles and specific separate rules carry out regulatory, control, educational functions. For example, not only specific legal or moral rules, but also legal and moral principles. The principles of justice and humanism, democracy, respect for human rights, the rule of law, etc. have a profound impact on the choice certain behavior people, social groups, teams, and in the absence of norms directly regulating this type of relationship. Social norms are related to the interests of the individual, society as a whole, as well as the interests of individual social groups, and the interests of the international community. Social norms that express the interests and values ​​common to all people, social groups, and the entire international community can be called universal norms. These universal human norms find expression in domestic and international life.

In the sphere of economic life of society, where the system of market relations operates, and also, to a certain extent, government regulation In order to ensure the development of production, an important role belongs to economic norms and regulations. These norms regulate the development of production, relations of distribution and consumption, relations between industries, Agriculture, trade. Economic norms and regulations regulate the monetary and financial system, the tax system, and the activities of banks and stock exchanges. A market economy is based primarily on a self-regulating system of market relations, but in all highly developed countries, such as the USA, Germany, Japan, England, etc., the state stimulates the development of the economy, strives to maintain the socio-political stability of society, and improve the living standards of the people. Therefore, the state protects the established order of free enterprise, takes measures to prevent a decline in production, a crisis in economic life, and to increase production based on the achievements of scientific and technological progress. Leverages such as taxes, credit, investments, and other means are used.

The transition from a command-administrative system in economic life to a market economy in Russia required fundamental changes in forms of ownership, overcoming the state monopoly on instruments and means of production, the establishment of private property and entrepreneurial activity, and a variety of forms of ownership. Economic reform, associated with great difficulties for the people, is aimed at forming a class of owners, creating favorable conditions for private enterprise, liberating the economy from state leadership, which in the current period hampered economic progress and caused a crisis in society.

In the conditions of formation and development of the market, the effective operation of economic norms and standards, self-regulating principles is established economic activity society, which, however, does not mean isolation of the state and law from the economy. Privatization policy, price liberalization, budget, tax policy, fees production assets, natural resources, credit policy, strengthening and improvement financial system- all this testifies to the active role of the state and law in the new structure of the country’s economic life. There is no doubt that the transition to a market, the establishment of healthy market relations will take a significant period of time in the life of the country and will require great efforts of the people and the state. This process will make significant changes to the system of social norms and normative regulation of social relations.

An important group of social norms consists of political norms. They regulate the attitude of social groups, classes, citizens to state power, relations between classes, nations and peoples. Political norms regulate the participation of people, classes, social groups in state power, the organization of the state, and the relationship of the state with other organizations of the political system of society. Political norms differ in the scope of regulation of political relations and the scope of content. The norms that have the greatest socio-political significance and breadth of content are called political principles.

Political principles include the principle of sovereignty, sovereignty of the people, the principle
equality of peoples, nations, equality of states, the principle of non-violent peaceful resolution of international disputes, etc.

Political norms are expressed in various forms: in political declarations, manifestos of states, political parties, movements, in state constitutions, charters and program documents of political parties. Political norms expressed in legal acts of the state acquire the meaning of legal norms. The issue of the relationship between political and legal norms is not resolved unambiguously. It is necessary to distinguish between a political norm and a political assessment of a social and legal norm. A political norm can be expressed in a legal act, but it can also be expressed in a political act directly. A legal norm has political significance in the sense that its assessment is subject to political criterion, it is established by the competent government authorities or any one government agency.

Of course, the political criterion and its content should not be absolutized and thus “politicized” all norms of law. It is necessary to keep in mind the differences, for example, between the norm of civil, family, labor, i.e. the norm of private law and the norm of constitutional law, the political nature of which is determined by its specific properties. The norms of constitutional law are political norms in legal form.

Political norms regulate the relationship of citizens with the state and its bodies. The election procedure, the participation of citizens in the elections of their representatives to government bodies, other government officials are regulated by political norms that are expressed in a legal act. Political norms also include those that define, regulate and control the relations of the legislative, executive and judicial powers. Every law adopted by government authorities, even if it does not directly express political relations, receives economic, social and political justification and an appropriate assessment in the legal and moral consciousness of society.

A significant group of social norms consists of corporate norms - regulations adopted in public organizations, labor collectives, educational institutions, business unions. These norms are established in the charters of associations, institutions, regulations, and other acts. For example, the activities of the Moscow state university them. M.V. Lomonosov is regulated by the Charter. Most of corporate norms are rules organizational nature. They establish the order of formation, construction, and functioning of public organizations, as well as the rights, duties, responsibilities, and relationships of members of these organizations.

Social actions and the behavior of people in society are also regulated by customs. A custom is a rule that has become established in social practice as a result of repeated application, an established approach to assessing a certain way of relationships, actions of a person, or a group of people. Custom is a form familiar to members of a society, group (people) social regulation. Customs that have a moral character are called mores. Morals express the psychology of a particular social group. Remnants of the past in the field of morality are most often retained in morals. Society, using cultural and organizational measures, fights morals that are unacceptable in a civilized society.

In influencing the lives of people, societies are very close to customs - traditions - established ways of behavior of people and social groups, passed on from generation to generation. Customs and traditions have signs of stability. Compared to custom, traditions represent a broader education. Tradition is a socio-psychological phenomenon whose content is much broader than custom. As a tradition, certain ideas, values, and social institutions appear. Support for traditions is justified by their usefulness to society. The basis for the vitality of traditions is continuity in the development of society, careful attitude to the social, cultural heritage, history of the people and the state. In the course of life processes, new traditions and customs are born and established.

In social life, primarily in the field of everyday and family relations, customs and traditions are manifested in rites and rituals. A ritual is an action or set of actions of a certain nature by a person or group of people. These are, for example, traditional wedding ceremonies, the ceremony of presenting a child’s birth certificate, rites of initiation into the workforce of young people starting their work. labor activity, farewell to labor veterans on their well-deserved rest, etc. Ritual ceremonies performed in a solemn atmosphere are called ritual. Thus, we can say about ritual that it is a type of custom or tradition.

A significant and important group of social norms are represented by religious norms that regulate the relationship of believers to God, the church, to each other, the structure and functions of religious organizations.

Code of moral and ethical principles - component religious beliefs. Religious canons (prescriptions, rules) represent a regulatory system operating in society from the earliest stages of human development. In the ancient world, religion, morality, and politics were interconnected. World religions: Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism, Islam - had a huge impact not only on the moral life of society, but also on the development legal systems. Christian religion, the canons of religious morality of Christianity have had and are having a significant impact on the life of the peoples of the Earth, especially the population of Europe and America. One of the main legal systems of our time is Islamic law. This right indicates to a Muslim the “path to follow” corresponding to the religion of Islam. Sharia - a set of religious and legal norms of Muslim feudal law - was born in the countries of the East. The sources of Sharia are the Koran, Sunnah, ijma (statements of preachers of the Muslim religion), qiyas (interpretation of the Koran and Sunnah).

In the Bible, Koran, Talmud, and other sources, along with the religious canons themselves, universal human norms are expressed. Such universal norms and requirements are contained, for example, in the Bible - in the commandments of Moses, in the Sermon on the Mount. The “Laws of Moses” established the obligation to work for six days and rest on the seventh, the requirement that children honor their parents, and prohibited murder, theft, and perjury. Social norms found expression in Christian church and canon law. These rules regulate internal organization churches, relationships between church bodies, believers with the state, some relationships in the lives of believers. In 1917, the Roman Catholic Church published the Code of Canon Law.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states: “Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief and freedom to manifest his religion or belief, alone or in community with others, in public or private.” order in teaching, worship and performance of religious and ritual rites." Freedom of conscience and religion, cooperation of all faiths to achieve prosperity and harmony in the world is a remarkable achievement of human civilization.

In the Russian Federation, the norms of different religious beliefs and trends apply. Among Russian citizens there are Orthodox, Catholics, Old Believers, Baptists, Muslims, Buddhists, and Jews. Russian legislation on freedom of conscience, religion, relations between the state and the church, religious organizations reflects the principles of the “Universal Declaration of Human Rights”, “Final Document of the Vienna Meeting of Representatives of the States Participating in the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe”. The “Declaration of Rights and Freedoms of Man and Citizen” adopted in Russia states that every person is guaranteed freedom of conscience, religion, religious or atheistic activity. Everyone has the right to freely profess any religion or not to profess any, to choose, have and disseminate religious or atheistic beliefs and act in accordance with them, subject to compliance with the law (Article 14).

The way of life, the achieved level of material well-being, the culture of society and the individual are reflected in the rules of cultural behavior, standards of decency, and etiquette. The rules of cultural behavior reflect the inner spiritual life of a person, his psychology and morality. These rules reveal the relationship between moral assessment and various aesthetic, sanitary and hygienic requirements, and considerations of convenience. Etiquette is a set of rules governing the external manifestations of human relationships, forms of communication, behavior in public places, manners and clothing.

People in modern civilized society in their Everyday life and activities are governed by many different norms and regulations. Norm (lat.) is a rule, an exact prescription. Being a certain sample, standard, model of behavior of an individual, groups of people, it is necessary in human society, especially in modern society, characterized by the complexity and diversity of social connections and relationships. All norms existing in society are usually divided into technical and social.

1. Technical norms are the rules for the interaction of people with forces and objects of nature, technology, tools and instruments of labor. These are the rules of the event construction work, agrotechnical norms, technical standards, norms for the consumption of materials, fuel, etc. In the modern era of the scientific and technological revolution, complications production processes, increasing value environmental problems their role is especially significant.
In a broad sense, technical norms can also include the rules of mathematics, language, auto-training, sports games, physiological, medical, sanitary and hygienic and other norms. A number of technical standards are enshrined in regulatory legal acts, thereby acquiring legal force. They are usually called technical-legal. These are fire safety rules, operation various types transport, energy, state standards, etc.
2. Social norms regulate relations between people and their groups. They are united by the fact that they are created and developed throughout the history of mankind and express the need social systems in self-regulation, are part of the structure of social consciousness and are determined by the level of civilization of society, its needs and interests.
All social norms are usually divided into the following types:
o customs;
o traditions;
o business practices;
o religious;
o political;
o norms of public associations (corporate);
o moral;
o legal.
Customs are rules of behavior that have developed historically, over the course of many generations, and have become habitual as a result of repeated repetition. There are customs of moral content (morals), various kinds of rules of etiquette, rites, and rituals.
Traditions are close to customs and in many ways identical to them. However, their creation is not necessarily associated with the long-term existence of the corresponding norm, but arises on the basis of the spread of some example of behavior perceived by a particular group or society as a whole (for example, a feast as a form of celebrating certain memorable dates). Like customs, traditions rely not only on the support of public opinion, but also on psychological factors - the desire of people to follow fashionable behavior, the fear of condemnation from others. The habit of observing customs and traditions for most members of society turns into an internal need, a stereotype of behavior.
Business customs - develop in industrial, scientific, educational activities people and are aimed at increasing its effectiveness. In modern society, there are both ancient, centuries-old customs and traditions that are reactionary in nature and which need to be fought (blood feud, bride kidnapping, etc.), as well as new ones that reflect the dynamics modern life and based on the ideas of collectivism, goodness and humanity.
Religious norms are rules established by various church denominations and mandatory for believers. They are contained in religious books (the Bible, Talmud, Koran, Sunnah, Laws of Manu, etc.), in acts adopted by church societies, meetings of the clergy or higher ranks of the church, in commentaries of religious books. Such norms regulate the performance of rituals, church services, and the observance of fasts. Religious norms can also have moral content (for example, commandments from Old Testament- do not kill, do not steal, honor your parents, etc.).
In antiquity and the Middle Ages there were long periods when many religious norms were given a legal character (canon law in medieval Europe). In modern Muslim states, the main sources of law are religious books - the Koran and Sunnah. It is also known that in the first years of Soviet power, the norms of Islamic law were applied in some regions Central Asia and the Caucasus.
Nowadays, in most civilized countries, people have the opportunity to freely carry out religious ceremonies, not related to violence against the individual, violation of public morality (marriage, burial of the deceased, etc.). However, such acts do not have legal significance.
Religious prohibitions and permissions, representing elementary norms of human relationships, concentrate the experience of social coexistence of people developed over millennia. This is the source of divine and human wisdom, the guiding compass of prosperity, the normal existence of humanity.
Political norms regulate the relations of classes, estates, nations, other social parties and other public associations aimed at gaining, retaining and using state power. They can exist either in the form of general slogans (the principle of democracy, the construction of communism, the introduction of the principles market economy etc.), and in the form of more specific political norms (privatization of state property, introduction of the principles of local self-government, economic program, pension, tax reforms, etc.). In any case, they act as a form of awareness and expression of class, collective, group interest, and assessment of political existence.
Political norms may be contained in the views of philosophers, politicians, leaders of political parties, social movements, their public speaking, in the charters and programs of parties and other public associations regarding the structure and nature of state power, its tasks and functions, general and specific programs and directions of its activities. Depending on specific historical conditions, the relationship of class, national, religious forces, the level of consciousness of society and its culture, the interaction of such norms varies. This includes mutual support, compromise, and confrontation.
Political norms cannot take precedence over law. Otherwise, it gives rise to political arbitrariness and contributes to the creation totalitarian regimes. Only there are a truly democratic system and a civilized civil society possible, where politics and political norms are based on the law, where the law limits political power, where a person, his interests and rights are the main object of state activity.
The norms of public associations (corporate norms) regulate the rights and obligations of members of parties, trade unions, voluntary societies (youth, women's, creative, scientific, cultural, educational, sports and recreational and other associations), the procedure for their creation and functioning (structure, management procedure, the powers of the association’s bodies, the amount of membership fees, etc.), as well as the relations of such associations with government bodies and other associations. Such norms are formulated in the charters and other documents of associations, express the will and interests of their members and are binding only for them. Violators of corporate norms are subject to sanctions (reprimand, exclusion from the association, etc.) provided for by the charters of the relevant associations.
Corporate norms also include those provided for by the charters of cooperatives and other non-governmental organizations commercial in nature.
Some of the most important aspects of the organization and activities of public associations are also regulated by legal norms. Legislation creates a legal basis for the organization and activities of public associations, determines general order their creation, relationships with government agencies. The Constitution of the Russian Federation provides for the right of everyone to associate and guarantees the freedom of activity of public associations. No one can be forced to join or remain in any association.
The law establishes prohibitions on creating associations that have criminal goals or carry out their activities using violent methods, as well as committing actions that go beyond the tasks provided for by their charters.
Morality is people's views and ideas about good and evil, shameful and praiseworthy, honor, conscience, duty, justice. At the same time, these are norms, principles of behavior emanating from this kind of views, as well as feelings and emotions that evaluate one’s own and others’ behavior from the point of view of goodness, justice and decency.
Being a form of social consciousness, morality, like law, is historical in nature. It is in motion, constantly changing, reflecting the level of development of society, its social structure, national, everyday, religious and, first of all, economic factors. The morality of primitive society, the eras of slavery, feudalism and modern moral ideas are in many ways different, and some of them are even opposite to each other.
Morality presupposes a value assessment of an individual not only towards other people, but also towards oneself, a sense of personal dignity and self-esteem of one’s behavior. The highest moral principles for a person are his:
o conscience;
o integrity;
o honesty;
o awareness of one's own debt.
Such universal human moral principles and foundations, developed over centuries, as honesty, truthfulness, philanthropy, mercy, justice, integrity, hard work, are called upon to be the guiding principles of people’s behavior and their relationships with each other. The humane content of morality is formulated in concentrated form in the “golden rule”, known since ancient times: “act towards others as you would like them to act towards you.” The general legal prescription of modern civil society that the exercise of human and civil rights and freedoms should not violate the rights and freedoms of other persons (Article 17 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation) harmoniously complements and develops this rule.
Rules of law
3.2. The relationship between law and morality
Among all social norms, moral and legal norms are the main regulators of human behavior, having highest value and social effect. They extend to the entire society, are similar in content, mutually complement each other, are determined primarily by economic, as well as political, cultural and other factors, and are means of expressing and harmonizing personal and group relations.
Law and morality are fundamental historical values, indicators of the civilization of a society, its social and cultural progress.
Along with general features, there are also quite significant differences between law and morality. The main ones are the following:
1. Morality and law arise at different times. Morality has existed since the emergence of human society, always accompanies the life and activity of an individual, while law develops later, at a certain stage social development when society is divided into opposing classes and a state arises.
2. Rules of law are created (changed, abolished) by the state in the process of the activities of authorized government agencies or are sanctioned by him (acts of some public organizations, for example local governments). Lawmaking is a monopoly of the state, its exclusive prerogative.
To create moral standards, no special purposeful activity is needed. They are formed spontaneously in the process of life and practical activity of people, are spontaneously recognized, as if sanctioned by social communities, groups, collectives, do not have state-authority significance and do not need recognition by the state.
3. Legal norms are formally defined, i.e. enshrined in official written acts of the state (laws, other normative legal acts, court decisions, etc.) or other texts sanctioned by the state (religious books, works of prominent legal scholars), which can be referred to when solving legal cases, and beyond such an outwardly expressed official form cannot exist. Moral norms and principles, as a rule, do not have clear, written, and especially official forms of expression and exist mainly in the minds of people. True, some of them are formulated in works of literature and art, religious sources (the Bible, Talmud), historical chronicles, programs and charters of various parties and other public associations.
4. Morality and law have different evaluative criteria for human behavior. Law uses such criteria as legal-illegal, legal-illegal, has the right - has a duty, etc. For moral assessment, there are other criteria: moral-immoral, honest-dishonest, commendable-shameful, noble-mean, etc.
5. Morality and law do not always coincide in their spheres of action. Morality governs a wider range of relationships, and its impact on social connections wider and deeper. There are practically no areas of people's lives that are not subject to moral assessment to one degree or another. Law regulates not all, but the most important areas of social relations (property, power, justice, ecology, relationships between the individual and the state, and some others), which can and should be regulated by state-authoritative means, where government intervention is possible and necessary. A whole range of personal, everyday and other relationships where moral principles apply (love, friendship, tastes, habits, etc.) are not included in the scope of the regulatory influence of law.
At the same time, the law contains big number norms, the content of which is indirectly related to morality. These are, for example, a number of norms of notarial office work, rules for maintaining court records, the procedure for registering transactions, etc. However, the need to comply with any legal norms and rules, including these, is not only a legal obligation, but also a moral duty of the relevant employees. Their violation entails not only legal liability, but also moral censure of the guilty employees.
6. Law and morality also differ in the degree of specificity of their prescriptions. Moral norms are usually of a more general nature and are, as a rule, principles of behavior designed for a large complex of various actions (principle, mutual assistance, truthfulness, etc.). The rules of law are usually more specific, clearly indicating the rights and obligations of participants in legal relations. Thus, if morality requires truthfulness in human relationships, then law provides for liability for misrepresentations, perjury in court, fraud, etc.
7. Distinctions between law and morality can also be made based on the methods of ensuring them. The rules of law, along with other methods (persuasion, education, prevention, material and moral encouragement, etc.) are also ensured by state coercion in case of their violation, legal sanctions (various measures of legal liability applied by the court and other law enforcement agencies).
Compliance with moral norms is based on something else: the power of social influence, the authority of the community in which the citizen lives, works, and studies. Public opinion, measures of spiritual and organizational influence (moral condemnation, exclusion from the team, etc.), censure of immoral acts by others - this is what morality is based on. One should not discount the internal incentives for moral behavior: conscience, shame, duty, honor, decency.
How do law and morality coincide? Speaking about the relationship between morality and law, it is necessary, first of all, to note that their requirements in decisive areas of relations coincide in content. What the law fights, as a rule, morality also condemns. A number of legal norms follow from religious and moral postulates (“thou shalt not kill,” “thou shalt not steal,” etc.). By enshrining in the law prohibitions on the commission of immoral, most harmful and dangerous acts for society, the law reinforces them with legal sanctions applied to violators of public order. On the other hand, what law allows and encourages is, as a rule, welcomed by morality.
Any illegal behavior is usually also an immoral act. Law requires compliance with the law, and morality also prescribes the same.
Law and morality are constantly connected in the administration of justice and the protection of public order. Without the use of moral criteria, it is impossible to objectively and fairly resolve cases of hooliganism, slander, eviction due to the impossibility of living together, deprivation of parental rights, the fate of children, etc. In a number of cases, legal norms serve as an important tool for educating people, displacing outdated and harmful moral customs and beliefs from their consciousness (blood feud, wedding dowry, bride kidnapping, etc.).
In what ways do law and morality contradict each other? The close interaction between law and morality does not exclude the presence in some cases of contradictions, discrepancies, and inconsistencies between them. So, morality in principle rejects death penalty as a form of punishment. Meanwhile, in many countries of the world it is provided for by law. As you know, the law does not prohibit a young mother from leaving her child in the maternity hospital, although in most cases those around her morally condemn her.
There are several reasons for the emergence of such contradictions and inconsistencies. One of them is great mobility, dynamism of morality, sufficient flexibility of its principles. It moves, as it were, ahead of law, which is more conservative due to its formal nature, the need to formalize its requirements in official law-making acts. Another reason is opportunistic, political, lobbying and other factors that are always present in law-making work, as well as simple legislator errors.
The effectiveness of legislation will be incomparably higher if its regulations are based not only on power, but also on universal moral postulates and principles. There is a well-known position substantiated by the Russian pre-revolutionary philosopher V.S. Solovyov, that law is a minimum of morality and is equally obligatory for everyone. The higher the moral validity of the law, the closer its content is to the moral postulates developed by world civilization over the centuries, the more democratic, humane, and fair it is.