Establishing Norms on BRAG

I find the shaping of norms to be interesting, and this past BRAG provided a number of real-life stories to illustrate how these norms are established and maintained. At the bottom of this, these stories provide a context in which the sharing of information helps each individual to come to their own conclusion, a conclusion that generally supports the goals of the group as a whole.

I'll start with the kindergarten teacher at Rest Stop #2. I think everyone who rode BRAG this past week can still hear "GLOVES OFF! WASH YOUR HANDS!". By now I think everyone who rode knows the story behind why we wash our hands, but I need to share the story with my other readers. Several years ago, many riders on BRAG were sent to the hospital. The cause of teh sickness was traced to contaminated hands in the ice and perhaps food. Although there are now signs asking that riders wash their hands, a little enforcement was needed. So, the kindergartner teacher became our enforcer. She did this tirelessly and in good humor, but leaving little doubt to her seriousness. She pushed the norm all by herself. As people asked why she needed to be so strong, they found out about the illness she was helping us avoid.

On the last day at Rest Stop #2, the kindergarten teacher had to split her attentions between the food table and the drink table which on this day were separated by 20-30 meters. She placed the food table on the honor system and gave her attention to the half-strength, full-strength and three-quarter strength Powerade coolers (water is always on the right). In time, a gentleman approached the food table with his gloves on. Another gentleman felt compelled to confront the man wearing his gloves. It didn't take long for challenges to be exchanged and the two eventually required outside intervention from the other riders. This shaping of the norm didn't go quite as well.

Another example of norm-shaping takes a different look at confrontation, or actually, avoiding the confrontation. A gentleman in line ahead of me at a rest stop tossed several banana peels toward a nearby plowed field. Now, I have a compost pile, but this wasn't my first thought. My first thought was I've never seen anyone do this on BRAG. In fact, I don't think I've ever seen anything on the ground at our rest stops. What could I say to this guy? He was about to step into a porta-john and my turn was next so I said nothing. After coming out of the john, I walked over to my bike which was conveniently located next to the banana peels. I casually picked them up, but this did not go unnoticed. More than one person standing in line clearly and audibly thanked me (but not quite as loud as the kindergarten teacher). It seems more than one person had noticed that the norm is to leave the rest stop looking the way we found it. We want to be welcomed back and treated well by our hosts.

Later we discussed the banana peel story and particularly whether the audible appreciation got the message across to the gentleman who tossed the peels. The women participating in the discussion were quick to question why none of us had confronted him directly and made sure he understood BRAG riders put their peels in the bags. I think if we were kindergarten teachers, we might have a better approach to shaping that norm. I couldn't express this at the time -- the two guys getting into a scuffle had not occurred yet -- but I sensed that I wasn't sufficiently skilled in shaping other's behavior without making it feel like a challenge.

The conclusion I guess I'm coming to is that guys don't always respond well to norm-shaping attempts. Certainly humor helps.

On the second day at the second Rest Stop, the kindergarten teacher was particularly active and when it became quiet enough for everyone to hear, one gentleman inquired, "Weren't we married once before?". The laughter softened the norm-shaping.

After the hard rain in Hinesville Friday afternoon, I had turned my bike upside down to help anchor a clothes line. A tent-camp neighbor pointed out my bike abuse. At first I felt a little defensive, but his low key opening allowed me to open up to his comment. I asked back, "Is this a 5-yard penalty or a 15-yard penalty? It's an unintentional foul in either case." The humor kept this moving in a productive direction. He explained that the moisture on my shifters would cause problems. His humor allowed constructive sharing of information and I was able to heed his advice.

Sometimes the humor masks the seriousness. There was a story of a guy in line for the shower who took the opportunity to smoke a cigarette. It was suggested that he wouldn't lose his place in line if he would take his cigarette away from the others in line. At first, it seemed like a joke, but after re-stating the offer of holding a place for the smoker, the norm-shaper got his point across.

BRAG is a great place for these sorts of people interactions. There are experienced riders who can share information with less experienced riders. There are tired, sore and frazzled riders mixed with people who are clearly doing what they love and enjoying every minute of their vacation. The varied mix is fertile ground for all sorts of interactions and opportunities to shape the norm.