Martin Micek

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Most norms, of course, aren’t enforced on pain of death. In general, the punishment will be tailored to the crime. When you forget to zip up your fly, for example, no one’s going to arrest you for public indecency; they’re just going to snicker. For minor transgressions, then, we have an arsenal of soft sanctions we try to use before escalating to more serious forms of punishment. Instead of lashing out physically at a transgressor, we might roll our eyes or flash a disapproving scowl. If body language doesn’t work, we might ask the transgressor to stop (politely or otherwise) or yell and ...more
The Elephant in the Brain: Hidden Motives in Everyday Life
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