What Are Conventions and What Are They For? Social, Cultural, and Institutional Functions of Human Agreements
What Are Conventions and What Are They For?
Social, Cultural, and Institutional Functions of Human Agreements
Introduction: Why Talking About Conventions Matters
Human societies are not sustained solely by written laws or by the direct coercion of political power. A large part of everyday social life—from how we greet one another to how we interpret a legal document or participate in a public ceremony—is organized through conventions: shared agreements, often implicit, that establish common expectations about behaviors, meanings, and procedures. Understanding what conventions are and what they are for means engaging with a fundamental dimension of social order that often goes unnoticed precisely because it functions effectively: when conventions work, they remain invisible; when they fail, conflict emerges.
This article approaches conventions from a social sciences perspective, integrating sociological, historical, legal, and cultural frameworks. It does not limit itself to offering a descriptive definition, but instead analyzes the processes through which conventions are constructed, legitimized, and transformed, as well as their implications in terms of power, inequality, agency, and social conflict. Far from being neutral rules, conventions structure hierarchies, distribute benefits and burdens, and reflect historical tensions among social groups with divergent interests.
What Is a Convention? A Conceptual Approach
In its broadest sense, a convention is a socially shared agreement that establishes how certain signs should be interpreted, how specific practices should be carried out, or how actions should be coordinated within a group. Unlike formal laws, conventions are not always codified in writing nor do they necessarily rely on explicit mechanisms of state sanction; their force lies in collective recognition and in the expectation of mutual compliance.
From social theory, conventions can be understood as implicit social rules that reduce uncertainty in human interaction. They allow individuals to anticipate others’ behavior and to coordinate actions in complex contexts. For example, the use of a specific language, norms of courtesy, or institutional protocols are conventions that make communication and cooperation possible.
It is important to distinguish conventions from related concepts. Unlike customs, which are often based on historical repetition, conventions imply a greater degree of conscious consensus. In contrast to moral norms, conventions are not necessarily perceived as ethically binding, but rather as functionally useful practices. And although they may coincide with laws, they do not depend exclusively on the legal apparatus for their validity.
What Are Conventions For? Fundamental Social Functions
Conventions fulfill multiple structural functions in social life. First, they facilitate coordination among individuals and groups. In complex societies, where interactions often occur among strangers, conventions act as cognitive shortcuts that allow situations to be interpreted quickly without constant negotiation.
Second, conventions produce social stability. By establishing relatively predictable expectations, they reduce everyday conflict and enable the reproduction of social practices over time. This stability, however, should not be confused with neutrality: many conventions crystallize historical power relations and may reproduce inequalities of gender, class, or ethnicity.
Finally, conventions serve a symbolic and cultural function. They do not merely regulate behavior but also transmit shared meanings about what is appropriate, legitimate, or desirable. In this sense, conventions actively participate in the construction of collective identities and in the delineation of social boundaries.
Historical Background of the Concept of Convention
The analysis of conventions has deep roots in the history of social thought. In classical philosophy, thinkers such as Aristotle already reflected on the distinction between what is natural and what is conventional, pointing out that many social norms derive not from nature but from human agreement. This distinction would be taken up centuries later by modern contractualist thought.
During the Enlightenment, philosophers such as Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau explored the idea that social order rests on conventional agreements that allow societies to overcome conflict and establish legitimate forms of government. Although their theories focused on the social contract, they laid the groundwork for understanding convention as a foundation of political organization.
In the twentieth century, sociology and anthropology deepened this analysis. Émile Durkheim emphasized the coercive character of social norms, while Max Weber examined how conventions relate to legitimacy and social action. More recently, institutional sociology and game theory have approached conventions as emergent solutions to coordination problems.
Conventions, Power, and Inequality
One of the most common mistakes in analyzing conventions is assuming that they are neutral agreements arising from full and equal consensus. In reality, many conventions are established in contexts of power asymmetry, where certain groups have greater capacity to impose their practices as universal.
Gender conventions provide an illustrative example. For centuries, implicit norms about the “appropriate” behavior of women and men have structured differential access to resources, rights, and social recognition. These conventions not only regulated private life but also justified institutional exclusions in areas such as education, labor, and politics.
Similarly, dominant cultural conventions can marginalize the knowledge, languages, or practices of subordinate groups. The imposition of an official language, for instance, is not merely a technical decision but a convention that defines who can fully participate in the public sphere.
Cultural Conventions and the Production of Meaning
Conventions play a central role in culture by establishing shared frameworks of interpretation. The meaning of symbols, rituals, and collective narratives depends on conventions that allow individuals to understand one another.
In the arts, for example, aesthetic conventions determine what counts as a legitimate work and how it should be interpreted. These conventions are not static: they change over time and reflect disputes among artistic movements, cultural institutions, and diverse audiences.
In everyday life, linguistic conventions structure communication. The fact that certain words, gestures, or silences carry specific meanings is the result of historically constructed social agreements. Breaking these conventions can generate misunderstanding, but it can also open spaces for creativity and social change.
Legal and International Conventions
In the legal sphere, conventions take on a more formalized form, although they remain based on agreement. International conventions, such as human rights treaties, are pacts among states that establish common norms to regulate behavior and resolve conflicts.
These conventions fulfill an ambivalent function. On the one hand, they represent significant advances in rights protection and global cooperation. On the other hand, their effectiveness depends on political will and on the capacity of international institutions to monitor compliance.
At the domestic level, many legal practices rest on interpretive conventions. Judges, for instance, apply the law following shared hermeneutic traditions that are not always explicitly stated in legal texts but nonetheless guide judicial decision-making.
Conventions and Social Change
Although conventions tend to stabilize social order, they are also subject to transformation. Social change often involves the contestation and re-signification of existing conventions, as well as the creation of new forms of agreement.
Social movements have been key actors in this process. By challenging naturalized conventions—such as those related to sexuality, race, or authority—these movements reveal the historical and contingent character of norms that appeared immutable. The initial resistance they encounter demonstrates how deeply conventions are embedded in power structures.
Changes in conventions do not occur instantaneously. They involve gradual processes of negotiation, conflict, and adaptation, in which old and new practices coexist. This coexistence generates tensions that manifest both at the institutional level and in everyday life.
The Situation of Conventions in Mexico
In the Mexican context, social and cultural conventions reflect a history marked by colonization, indigenous diversity, and uneven processes of modernization. Many dominant conventions were constructed from a Eurocentric perspective, marginalizing indigenous practices and knowledge systems.
In the legal sphere, Mexico is party to numerous international conventions, particularly in the field of human rights. The incorporation of these agreements into the national legal framework has generated debates about sovereignty, legal pluralism, and the relationship between international norms and local practices.
Recent transformations regarding conventions of gender, family, and political participation reveal an ongoing process of social reconfiguration. These changes are not free of conflict, but they demonstrate societies’ capacity to critically reassess their foundational agreements.
Academic-Critical Essay: Conventions, Memory, and Conflict
Analyzing conventions requires recognizing their historical and conflictual dimension. Far from being mere technical tools, conventions condense collective memories, experiences of violence, and struggles for recognition. Many current conventions were built upon processes of exclusion that left deep traces in bodies and institutions.
The mythification of certain conventions—presented as “natural” or “eternal” traditions—helps obscure their historical origins and delegitimize demands for change. In this sense, critiquing conventions does not seek to eliminate all forms of social agreement, but rather to make their constructed nature visible and open them to democratic deliberation.
From an ethical perspective, revisiting conventions entails asking whom they benefit, whom they harm, and what alternatives might be imagined. In a world marked by inequality and cultural diversity, the ability to renegotiate conventions in an inclusive manner becomes a central condition for social justice.
Current Trends and Future Challenges
In the digital age, conventions are undergoing accelerated transformations. Technological platforms generate new implicit rules of interaction, often defined by opaque algorithms. These digital conventions influence communication, politics, and the economy, posing unprecedented challenges for democratic regulation.
At the same time, globalization intensifies contact among diverse conventional systems, generating both creative hybridizations and cultural conflicts. The challenge lies in constructing conventions capable of articulating plurality and cohesion without reproducing exclusionary hierarchies.
Conclusion
Conventions are an essential component of social life. They organize interaction, produce meaning, and stabilize expectations, but they also reflect and reproduce power relations. Understanding what conventions are and what they are for requires an analysis that goes beyond superficial definition and explores their historical roots, political implications, and transformative possibilities.
Ultimately, conventions are not inevitable destinies but revisable human agreements. Recognizing this condition opens the door to critical reflection on the kind of society we want to build and on the agreements we are willing to sustain collectively.
References
Reading Comprehension Activity: Social Conventions
Learning Objective
This activity aims to develop students’ reading comprehension, conceptual understanding, and critical thinking through the analysis of a text on social conventions. Students are expected to identify key concepts, explain social processes, and apply theoretical ideas to real-life contexts.
Activity Structure
The activity is organized into three progressive phases that move from basic comprehension to critical application. This structure allows students to engage deeply with the text while developing analytical and reflective skills.
Phase 1 — Anchor Questions (During Reading)
Skill focus: conceptual comprehension and synthesis
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How does the text define a convention, and how is it different from a law?
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Why do conventions reduce uncertainty in social life?
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Which example from the text helped you most to understand the concept of convention, and why?
Phase 2 — Deep Comprehension and Analysis
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Explain why conventions are fundamental to social coordination in complex societies.
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What distinction does the text establish between conventions, moral norms, and laws?
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Why does the author argue that many conventions reflect power relations?
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Analyze the role of conventions in the construction of cultural meanings.
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How can conventions contribute both to social stability and to conflict?
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Explain the link between conventions and social change according to the text.
Phase 3 — Critical Application
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Apply the concept of convention to a concrete example from your own context and analyze it critically, considering its function, beneficiaries, and potential for change.
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