Unwritten rules, also called unspoken rules, are
behavioral
Behavior (American English) or behaviour (British English) is the range of actions of individuals, organisms, systems or artificial entities in some environment. These systems can include other systems or organisms as well as the inanimate p ...
constraints imposed in organizations or societies that are not typically voiced or written down. They usually exist in unspoken and unwritten format because they form a part of the
logical argument
An argument is a series of Sentence (linguistics), sentences, Statement (logic), statements, or propositions some of which are called premises and one is the Logical consequence, conclusion. The purpose of an argument is to give Reason (argument) ...
or course of action implied by
tacit assumptions. Examples involving unspoken rules include unwritten and unofficial organizational hierarchies,
organizational culture
Organizational culture encompasses the shared norms, values, corporate language and behaviors - observed in schools, universities, not-for-profit groups, government agencies, and businesses - reflecting their core values and strategic direction. ...
, and acceptable behavioral
norms governing interactions between organizational members. These rules typically align with the behaviors of the local majority group and seem normal to them, but can be obscure, invisible, and exclusionary to minority groups.
Noteworthy examples
For example, the
captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...
of a ship is always expected to be the
last to evacuate it in a disaster. Or, as Vince Waldron wrote, "A pet, once named, instantly becomes an inseparable member of the family".
The Harvard Business Review considers it good business practice to bring ''unwritten rules'' to the surface and document them. ''Unwritten rules'' can cause uncertainty and stress for newer employees, and great clarity can improve productivity and profitability.
Employment and discrimination
In the workplace, some unspoken rules can have a significant impact on one's job satisfaction, advancement opportunities, and career trajectory.
In sports, Scottish football club,
Rangers until 1989 had an unwritten rule of not signing any player who was openly Catholic.
Yorkshire County Cricket Club
Yorkshire County Cricket Club is a professional Cricket club based in Yorkshire, England. The team competes in the County Championship, the top tier of English First-class cricket. Nicknamed "Vikings". Yorkshire also competes in T20 Blast, O ...
also historically had an unwritten rule that cricketers could only play for them if they were born within the historical county boundaries of
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...
.
See also
*
Shibboleth
A shibboleth ( ; ) is any custom or tradition—usually a choice of phrasing or single word—that distinguishes one group of people from another. Historically, shibboleths have been used as passwords, ways of self-identification, signals of l ...
* ''
Lex non scripta''
*
Unenumerated rights
*
Unwritten rules of baseball
References
{{Reflist
Logic
Rules
Rights
2001 neologisms
sv:Social norm#Oskriven regel