Nuances of behavior within a society: access and exposure

Nuances of behavior within a society: access and exposure

It is not the first nor the last time that we encountered urination in public, but what is worth considering however briefly, is the social or cultural nuances of the behavior that western visitors in Vietnam find inconsiderate at best, and for some disturbing at least – males standing in plain sight and urinating along a busy road, in a semi-crowded beach, and outside a shopping/restaurant area. As appalling as such behavior may be perceived, two questions come to mind, would such behavior occur if people of have access to toilets or “water factories” as one of our tour guides called it? If lack of access to toilets were the cause of such behavior, then the second question to explore is - where do females find relief for the very similar human and natural need? Although there are more females than males in Vietnam, we have not encountered females participating in such display. One possible explanation, at least by way of speculation, is that within Vietnamese society such behavior may be tolerated for males but not for females. I am reminded, as I write this blog entry, that in many societies some social norms are different for males versus females. It is likely that such dichotomy also exists in the proclaimed conservative Vietnamese society where a different set of expectations may apply to females versus males, at least when it comes to socially tolerated behavior such as urinating in public.