For a More Hygienic World
What norms did you violate?
The group violated the norm in using a public restroom. The norm of using a public bathroom would be in line of relieving oneself of excrement, washing the hands or face, as well as tidying their appearance. Someone could change their clothes there, put on some clothes, even brush their teeth. Normally, a person would only go to a bathroom to do the stated, but what the group did was beyond the ordinary. The group shampooed their hair in the public restroom. Not out of the ordinary when it’s still in line with personal hygiene, but has anyone really seen someone do that in a public restroom especially in a plaza or a mall? Next time someone would shampoo their hair in a public restroom, think about how his hair would feel after.
Describe the breaching experiment in detail. What was the activity? Where did you do it?
The group performed their individual tasks as either the recorder or the deviant inside the public space. The group chose to specific areas to do their experiment and the areas chosen were to show the distinctions or similarities when the deviant act of shampooing one’s hair in a public restroom was done. The first area the group visited was the UP Town Center (UPTC) located in Katipunan. It was considered as a high-end plaza by the group, because of the shops and restaurants found there. The other area was the Ever Gotesco Commonwealth Center (EGCC), which was located in Commonwealth. It’s considered as the low end area between the two, because of how the group sees it as deteriorating and had shops that can be classified as low brands--for example “World Balance”, a copy of the well known brand New Balance.
In the first stop, which was in UPTC. The group chose the restroom that was perceived to be the most used in the vicinity. It’s near several restaurants and in front of an entrance that lead to the large open area. Inside the restroom, it was clean and well maintained by the staff and had multiple stalls, urinals, and sinks. After examining the area, the group devised a strategy on how to capture the moments. The group had at most two cameras recording from different angles. As the deviant enters the restroom, one recorder was in a stationary spot while the other recorder would enter after the deviant and start recording in a different, more zoomed in angle. The same goes when the group reached EGCC. The difference in area was fairly indisputable, the one’s in EGCC was evidently smaller and less hygienic compared to the restrooms in UPTC. The group needed to reconfigure the plan to fit the smaller area. One had to move around the restroom to get good shots and at the subtly instigate a reaction from the people. The group went to another restroom in EGCC, this time without an entrance fee.
As for the deviant, it was his main goal to attract attention and by doing so create reactions from the people. The deviant calmly walked inside the restroom and occupied the middle sink. He then took opened the faucet and proceeded to wet his hair. It wasn’t abnormal to do that, even in a public restroom. But after completely wetting his hair, he then took out a bottle of shampoo from his pocket and lathered it on his head. The deviant shampooed his hair for a good 5-10 minutes. The person then left the restroom as if it was a normal thing to do.
Reactions
The group received various reactions from unsuspecting people. If it wasn’t enough to see it once, some went back to watch the deviant thoroughly wash his hair in the public restroom. Even when others were doing their business in the urinals and in front of the sink, they still turned their heads toward the deviant to have a quick glance or a long careful look. As the group compiled their recordings, they saw some people who were dumbfounded of a person washing his hair in a public restroom, curious as to why he was doing it, weirded out because it wasn’t what the restroom was usually for, and fascinated that someone was actually doing it in front of them in public.
Aside from the norms, what sociological themes are at play for people to react in a certain way?
The group noticed that between the two malls, the one that catered to a predominantly lower social class demographic had more instances wherein people reacted to the experiment. This could possibly indicate how the difference in social class as part of a person’s social location can also affect the norms and mores they practice in a specific area like a bathroom. This could also mean that one’s social class affect how they react to deviance or a violation of the norms they are accustomed to as seen in the difference in number of quizzical reactions present in both malls.
How did you feel when you did this experiment? How does it feel to deviate from the norms? Were you hesitant to do the activity?
- Enrique:
I found the experiment interesting and I was looking forward to seeing how people would react. I admit it was a bit embarrassing at first but after the first few videos, it got easier. It helped knowing that it was just an experiment and that I was expecting confused reactions. Once you get past the initial awkwardness, it’s easier to go through with the experiment. The only hesitation I had was about whether or not a guard or custodian would question what we were doing.
- Levi: I have to admit that I was pretty hesitant about doing the experiment because I’m very conscious about what other people think of me, and I think this deviant act is one of the things that would attract judgement from other people. But when Enrique had his first go, I kind of got excited to do it because it seemed pretty fun getting to see how people would react to you when doing something unusual. When I got to do it, it felt refreshing. It felt refreshing because the shampoo we used had menthol in it, and it made my hair feel fresh and cool on a hot day in the Philippines. Getting to do the experiment was a lot more fun than I expected, and getting to put together the video was even more fun than doing the actual experiment itself because I got to really look at how people reacted, and get to see all the weird things my group mates did that they recorded on one of the phones we used to record the experiment.
- Justin: When I was in the actual act of doing the experiment, at first I was nervous. I even tried hiding my face by leaning forward towards the sink because I was not used to being so deviant. I’ve never actually done it before. I’ve always tried to fit into the norms of society since I wanted others to see me as “normal.” I guess it has something to do with the way I was raised since I was raised to follow the rules. That’s why I really felt hesitant at first because I didn’t want others to think of me “in that way,” or to see me as “the shampoo kid.” I guess no matter how bad I wanted to stand out and declare my individuality, it’ll always have to be in a way that’s still confined to the norms of society.
- Anton: At first I was hesitant in doing the experiment. I was always someone who thinks about others’ opinions. Doing a deviant act in a public place made it the more inconvenient for me. But I was later compelled to do it since I saw my groupmates doing it without any problems. When I deviated from the norm and I was shampooing my hair, I didn’t feel any different nor did I feel any embarrassment. But I still felt that one or two dudes were watching me a little too long. One even had to do a double take. The weirdest part was when the guy who did a double take was still waiting outside the restroom. Dude was weird, but then again I was the one shampooing his hair inside a public restroom at Tom’s World.
- Jeff: It felt very awkward to be doing something quite weird, especially in a public space. I was very apprehensive about it since people might judge us for doing it. I was thinking about how it would look from an outsider's perspective and about how would i react to it personally if i encountered it. But when we started, I realized that I overestimated the people’s reactions. Most of them only gave quick glances, some didn't even seem to mind. I expected that people would be more reactive and be more vocal about the activity but they weren't. This could be due to the fact that most Filipinos do not want to infringe on other people’s business. They tend to just mind their own business and let other people do their thing.
Other observations and analysis that you may have on the activity and on deviance in general.
Although there were instances where people reacted quizzically at the experiment, there were also a fair amount of instances where they displayed little to no reaction. The group wonders whether or not the experiment would have had significantly different results had it been applied to women as well. The group noticed that the time spent in bathrooms by men is significantly shorter compared to that of women. This could mean that the norms and mores within a female comfort room varies from the ones present in a male comfort room. The group believes it would have had a better understanding of deviance had they been able to conduct the same experiment within a female comfort room.
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