1. Folkways: Folkways are norms to which individuals conform. It is customary to do so. Conformity to folkways is not enforced by law or any other agency of the society. It is the informal acceptance of established practices in each group or society. Folkways are manifested in matters of dress, food habits, observance of rituals, forms of worship and methods of greeting, etc. For instance, food habits in north and south India are different and these habits often persist even when the person has moved to a different location away from her / his earlier surroundings.
2. Mores: Mores refer to moral conduct as distinct from the customary practice of folkways. They influence the value system of a society and are in the form of social regulations which aim to maintain social order. Mores seek to regulate the relationship between individuals in defined situations, viz. between wife and husband, parents and children, student and teacher, etc. They may also refer to general social relationships in terms of honesty, truthfulness, hard work, discipline, etc. Since mores are consciously designed and created with a view to preserve them, violations of these often entail penalties. They are perhaps the strongest mechanisms of informal social control.
3. Customs: Customs are the long established practices of people, which occur spontaneously but gradually. Along with regulating social life, they also bind them together. In primitive societies, customs were powerful means of social control, but in modern times, they have weakened due to a rise in the forces of rationality and diversity.
4. Religion: Religion exercises a powerful, albeit unscientific, influence on its adherents. Emile Durkheim defines religion as the unified system of beliefs and practices related to sacred things. Those who have common beliefs and practices are united into one single moral community through religion.

(2) Formal Means of Social Control

The formal means of social control come from institutions such as the state, law, education and those which have legitimate power. They apply coercive measures in the case of deviance.

1. Law: In primitive societies, the groups followed similar occupations and individuals shared a direct, personal and intimate relation among themselves. These folkways, mores and customs sufficed in controlling the individual behaviour. There was almost unquestioned compliance with the informal mechanism of social control.

 In contrast, modern societies are characterized by immense diversity, individualism, division of labour and differentiation in terms of work, ethics and lifestyle. Urbanization and accelerated movement of people striving for a better and dignified life has changed the worldview of social groups. Relationships have become formal. Customs and folkways seem inadequate to control diverse population groups. Simultaneously, the State has grown stronger and more specialized in nature. It is now necessary and possible to regulate individual behaviour by a formulating a set of common laws which are backed by the legal, administrative and political machinery of the State. Laws and enforcement agencies are replaced by customs and mores as the regulators of behaviour and ensure social order and control.