Folkways, mores, taboos
MCAT glossary · MCAT
Definition
Folkways: everyday norms (etiquette); mores: morally significant norms (cheating); taboos: forbidden behaviors (incest).
Folkways, mores, taboos in plain English
Every society has unwritten 'rules' for behavior, but they don't all carry the same weight — sociologists sort them into three levels by how seriously people take breaking them. Folkways are the mild everyday customs, like facing forward in an elevator or chewing with your mouth closed; break one and you just seem rude. Mores (say 'MOR-ays') are the ones tied to right and wrong, like cheating or lying, and breaking them makes people see you as a bad person. Taboos are the deepest, near-universal prohibitions that trigger disgust or horror, like incest — the kind of thing almost no culture allows.
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