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Social institutions are the most fundamental building blocks of societies. They are the structural foundations of human social life. Social institutions "order and structure the behavior of individuals in core areas of society," (Verwiebe, n.d., p. 1). Kinship, religion, and politics are all examples of the social institutions that hold sway over the lives of individuals. However, underneath the strongest of social institutions are the values and norms of that society. This is why different cultures may have similar social institutions (such as religion, politics, and family) but those institutions appear vastly different. Moreover, the role each institution plays in a society may vary. For example, religion plays a central role in some societies but not in others. Social institutions change over time, and often dramatically. Patriarchy, for example, is a social institution common to many cultures but is being increasingly challenged from within those very same societies. Likewise, the institution of marriage is being challenged particularly on the grounds that it represents patriarchal values. When social institutions as fundamental as those related to family or religion change, the results can be dramatic and occasionally violent. Changing social institutions can cause serious repercussions not only on...
Yet the ways different cultures "do" gender becomes institutionalized. Heterosexuality is, for example, a social institution in most cultures. Yet there are a few cultures in which a more open and tolerant or fluid view of sexuality exists. In this way, social institutions that are strong and apparent in one culture may not be so in another. Most societies have relatively strict gender roles and norms, with division of labor and differential social statuses conferred depending on gender.
Political structures and institutions are cornerstones of all societies. Even in small tribal or kinship-oriented cultures, there is some hierarchy that enables law and order. Power is the most critical dimension of the social institution of politics. Politics becomes the means through which people express their power. Power can be shared among all members of a society as it is in democracies, or power can be vested into the hands of a select few who govern tightly and authoritatively over the vast majority of people. Closely connected with politics are the economic…
References
Miller, S. (2011). Social institutions. SEP. Retrieved online: http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/social-institutions/
Verwiebe, R. (n.d.). Social institutions. Retrieved online: https://www.soz.univie.ac.at/fileadmin/user_upload/inst_soziologie/Personen/Institutsmitglieder/Verwiebe/Social_Institutions_in_Encyclopedia_of_Quality_of_Life_Research.pdf
Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam are a few of the "universal" or "universalizing" religions. Strayer frames the universalizing religions in terms of the spread of different cultures and ideas throughout the world. Religions are integral to social and political power and control, and thus have a transformative effect on society as well as on the individuals within that society. The nature of universalizing religion is such that they can be all-pervasive,
Social institutions refer to a complex and lasting collection of interactions and behaviours whose effect can be felt in societies. Social institutions give order and organization to the behaviour of people via their normalizing qualities and they guide the conduct of people in all major sectors of the society (Verwiebe, 2015). In this paper, we will consider; a pill container, an American flag, a cap, a cross, a gown, a
Social Institution and Organized Crime Viewing organized crime as a social institution can enable law enforcement agencies to better understand how organized crime operates and maintains its structure and standing in society. A social institution is simply a system in which behaviors and relationships governed by the mechanisms of the system's structure; it consists of a group of social positions, relationships and social roles, all of which combine to give the
The Role of Non-Profits as Society EvolvesTurner concludes that the interchanges and interconnections between the cores of the major social institutions have become more complex. However, he goes on to add that although these interchanges have varied historically, the more fundamental relationships among institutions have remained the same. This text seeks to analyze how the role of nonprofits, including the impact, scope, and mission, have evolved historically with the evolving
Social change refers to the significant alteration of social structure and cultural patterns through time. Social structure is the routine interaction among persons or groups and cultural patterns refer to the shared way of thinking, knowledge, beliefs, etc. When a social change occurs, it affects both social structure and culture. The first kind is the change in personnel and it denotes the process of new people, with personal histories and experiences,
According to Freud, human societies require people to give up many of their most natural instincts and to replace their natural desires with the need to satisfy the "false standards of measurement" such as the "power, success and wealth [that they seek] for themselves and admire & #8230; in others, and that [as a result,] they underestimate what is of true value in life." Fred suggested that the need to