Permissive society

Permissive society

The permissive society is a label given to a society where social norms are becoming increasingly liberal. This usually accompanies a change in what is considered deviant. An extreme of permissiveness would be a society that has few moral codes beyond "do not harm others". Aspects that often change as a society becomes more permissive:

* Sexual `freedom` increases. This includes the freedom to take part in sexual activities which are not the norm, such as BDSM and fetishes, as well as sexual orientations that have been frowned upon in the past, such as homosexuality and bisexuality.
* Freedom to view violent and sexual material including movies, music, art and literature increases, and censorship of these and other arts decreases.
* The power of religious groups decreases, often accompanied by a rising secularism.

The most cited example is that of the social revolution of 1960's in Europe and America both in the new attitudes to the arts, abortion, homosexuality and capital punishment. As well as to the general loosening of Britain's adherence to Victorian Values.

Though some view permissiveness as a good thing, social conservatives claim the past was better, in that it involved fewer divorces, lower rates of teen pregnancy, Sexually Transmitted Diseases and so on Fact|date=September 2008. In America, campaigns such as the Moral Majority movement have taken this view, similar campaigns are less common in Europe.

Others answer that these things were outcomes of repressiveness, which had other downsides (for example that women could not divorce bad husbands because they did not have independent income). In America, such organizations as the National Organization for Women have taken this view

ee also

*Sexual revolution


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  • Permissive Society — (englisch „permissive, tolerante, liberale oder duldende Gesellschaft“) ist ein soziologischer Streitbegriff, der ein Gesellschaftsmodell in England in der zweiten Hälfte des 20. Jahrhunderts bezeichnet. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 Definition 2 Herkunft …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • permissive society — (usually the permissive society) n [sing] (often disapprov) the social conditions and attitudes in countries such as Britain and the US in the 1960s and 1970s, when there was a new freedom of sexual behaviour and a greater willingness to tolerate …   Universalium

  • permissive society — the perˌmissive soˈciety 7 [permissive society] noun singular (often disapproving) the changes towards greater freedom in attitudes and behaviour that happened in many countries in the 1960s and 1970s, especially the greater freedom in sexual… …   Useful english dictionary

  • permissive society — /pəmɪsɪv səˈsaɪəti/ (say puhmisiv suh suyuhtee) noun (dated) a society in which the restraints of traditional morality operate weakly, especially with regard to sexual behaviour …  

  • permissive — permissible, permissive, permitted Permissible is spelt ible and means ‘allowable’, having potential force rather than the actual force conveyed by permitted. Permissive means ‘tolerant or liberal in morals’ as in the phrase the permissive… …   Modern English usage

  • permissive — per|mis|sive [pəˈmısıv US pər ] adj not strict, and allowing behaviour that many other people would disapprove of ▪ parents who are too permissive ▪ a permissive society >permissiveness n [U] ▪ permissiveness in education …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • permissive — adjective allowing behaviour, especially sexual behaviour, that many other people disapprove of: parents who are too permissive | the permissive society of the s permissiveness noun (U): permissiveness in education permissively adverb …   Longman dictionary of contemporary English

  • permissive — adj. 1 tolerant; liberal, esp. in sexual matters (the permissive society). 2 giving permission. Phrases and idioms: permissive legislation legislation giving powers but not enjoining their use. Derivatives: permissively adv. permissiveness n.… …   Useful english dictionary

  • permissive — per|mis|sive [ pər mısıv ] adjective allowing someone a large amount of freedom to behave as they choose, especially in relation to sex: a permissive society ╾ per|mis|sive|ness noun uncount …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • permissive —    less constrained by custom in personal conduct    Formerly meaning not obligatory, and then relaxed or lenient, as in the British permissive society resulting in part from reforms initiated by Roy Jenkins in the 1960s, which decriminalized… …   How not to say what you mean: A dictionary of euphemisms

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