Without the norms the individual would be faced with the burden of taking decisions at every moment. The following example reveals how norms can ease our daily work: Ex: A college going student gets up early in the morning, brushes his teeth and takes his bath, eats his breakfast, wears college going dress, rides the vehicle to the college, greets friends and wishes lecturers, attends to class-room lectures, makes reference study in library during free hours, plays cricket in ground with other friends, returns home early in the evening, studies his daily lessons during the night, and so on. The hypothetical student may not find it difficult or problematic to do all these activities, because each of these activities is governed by norms. The student’s knowledge of these norms has eased his work.
Without social norms our social relations become haphazard, chaotic and even dangerous. Norms give order, stability, and predictability to social life. In the absence of norms, a state of ‘ anomie’ would prevail as Durkheim spoke of it. Anomie is the contradiction of society. Where there are no norms, there is also no society.