Rituals

Rituals are meaningful behaviors that are repeated over time. They include everyday activities such as sharing morning coffee with a coworker to more rare occurrences such as celebrating New Years and partaking in a family reunion. Rituals are distinguished from routines in that they hold special meaning for the involved participants. Routines can become rituals if participants enact them out of preference rather than efficiency. In other words, rituals contain an emotional component, whereas routines do not. Another defining characteristic of rituals is their regularity. They tend to be [Page 1419]practiced the same way over time with little change. Rituals are also defined by their deliberateness. Rather than occurring spontaneously or without intention, they are purposeful. Some rituals such as high school reunions or funerals ...