Mother-in-law taboo
Nature
A custom most often practised in matrilineal societies which restricts contact between a husband and his wife's mother. They may be enjoined from speaking, looking at or referring to one another. In middle-class Western cultures a mild form of this taboo is given wide recognition in jokes. Although this taboo prevents friction in societies in which the structural interests of husband and mother-in-law conflict, it blocks communication.
Broader
Strategy(ies)
Value(s)
Type
(F) Fuzzy exceptional problems