The process of ordering formalization and standardization is called. The concept of "social institution". Institutionalization of public life. Formal and informal social institutions


Social institutions - these are historically established stable forms of organizing joint activities of people.

The most commonly used meaning of the term social institution”, is associated with the characteristics of any kind of streamlining, formalization and standardization of social ties and relations.

social institution - a stable set of rules, norms, installations that regulate various areas of human activity and organize their system social roles and statuses.

The process of ordering, formalization and standardization is called institutionalization .

Stages of institutionalization:

1. The emergence of needs, the satisfaction of which requires joint organized action

2. Formation of common ideas

3. The emergence of social norms and rules during a spontaneous social interaction carried out by trial and error

4. Emergence of procedures related to the implementation of rules and regulations

5. Institutionalization of norms, rules and procedures (adoption, consolidation, practical application)

6. Establishing systems of sanctions to maintain norms and rules; differentiation of their application in specific cases

7. Material and symbolic design of the emergence of institutional systems.

The process of institutionalization includes a number of points:

1. One of necessary conditions the emergence of social institutions serves the corresponding social need. Institutions are designed to organize the joint activities of people in order to meet certain social needs. The emergence of certain social needs, as well as the conditions for their satisfaction, are the first necessary moments of institutionalization.

The variety of institutions corresponds to the variety of human needs:

a) The need for the production of products and services

b) The need for the distribution of goods and privileges

c) The need for security, protection of life and well-being

d) The need for social control over the behavior of human society

e) The need for communication

f) The need for collectivism in collective action, but in a certain situation.

2. A social institution is formed on the basis of social connections, interactions and relationships of specific persons, individuals, social groups and other communities. But it, like other social systems, cannot be reduced to the sum of these individuals and their interactions.

Social institutions are supra-individual character, have their own systemic quality. Consequently, social institution is an independent public entity, which has its own logic of development. From this point of view social institutions can be considered as organized social systems characterized by the stability of the structure, the integration of their elements and a certain variability of their functions.

These systems consist of a number of basic elements that are seen in the system of values, norms, ideals, as well as patterns of activity and behavior of people and other elements of the sociocultural process.

This system guarantees similar behavior of people, coordinates and directs their certain aspirations, establishes ways to satisfy their needs, resolves conflicts that arise in the process of everyday life, provides a state of balance and stability within a particular social community and society as a whole.

In itself, the presence of these socio-cultural elements does not yet ensure the functioning of a social institution. For it to work necessary:

a) To make these elements public inner world personalities, were internalized by them in the process of socialization, embodied in the form of social roles and statuses.

b) The internalization by individuals of all sociocultural elements, the formation on their basis of a system of personality needs, value orientations and expectations is the second most important element of institutionalization.

3. Organizational design of a social institution .

Externally social institution - a set of persons, institutions equipped with certain material resources and performing a certain social function.

Each public sphere has its own social institution:

Economic sphere - bank, stock exchange

Political sphere - parties, power

Spiritual sphere - culture, religion, education

Each social institution is characterized by the presence of a goal of its activity, specific functions that ensure the achievement of such a goal, a set of social positions and roles typical for this institution..

Social institutions - these are organized associations of people performing certain socially significant functions, ensuring the joint achievement of goals based on the social roles performed by members, set by social values, norms and patterns of behavior.

How harder society- the more developed the system of social institutions.

The history of social institutions, their evolution is subject to the following patterns: from the institutions of traditional society, based on the rules of behavior and family ties prescribed by rituals and customs, to modern institutions based on achievement goals, based on competence, independence, personal responsibility, rationality and relatively independent of moral prescriptions.

problem for modern society represents contradiction between the institutional complexes of the state, some of which tend to professional activity, which inevitably entails a certain closeness and inaccessibility to others, with other institutions which act as a direct channel for the open expression of the interests of a wide variety of groups in society.

The problem of the interaction of social institutions arises if the system of norms inherent in one institution begins to invade other areas social life where other institutions used to function. The result may be the disorganization of public life, the growing social tension and even the destruction of any of the institutions.

Changes in social institutions can be caused by internal and external causes.

Internal causes most often associated with a change in cultural orientation in the development of society, with a change in spiritual and moral ideas, which leads to a crisis.

External causes - the inefficiency of social institutions, the contradiction between existing institutions and social motivation.



Introduction

1. The concept of "social institution" and "social organization".

2. Types of social institutions.

3. Functions and structure of social institutions.

Conclusion

List of used literature


Introduction

The term "social institution" is used in a wide variety of meanings. They talk about the institution of the family, the institution of education, health care, the institution of the state, etc. The first, most often used meaning of the term "social institution" is associated with the characteristics of any kind of ordering, formalization and standardization of social relations and relations. And the process of streamlining, formalization and standardization is called institutionalization.

The process of institutionalization includes a number of points: 1) One of the necessary conditions for the emergence of social institutions is the corresponding social need. Institutions are designed to organize the joint activities of people in order to meet certain social needs. Thus, the institution of the family satisfies the need for the reproduction of the human race and the upbringing of children, implements relations between the sexes, generations, etc. The Institute higher education provides training for the labor force, enables a person to develop his abilities in order to realize them in subsequent activities and ensure his existence, etc. The emergence of certain social needs, as well as the conditions for their satisfaction, are the first necessary moments of institutionalization. 2) A social institution is formed on the basis of social ties, interactions and relationships of specific individuals, individuals, social groups and other communities. But it, like other social systems, cannot be reduced to the sum of these individuals and their interactions. Social institutions are supra-individual in nature, have their own systemic quality.

Consequently, a social institution is an independent public entity that has its own logic of development. From this point of view, social institutions can be considered as organized social systems characterized by the stability of the structure, the integration of their elements and a certain variability of their functions.

3) The third essential element of institutionalization

is the organizational design of a social institution. Outwardly, a social institution is a collection of persons, institutions, equipped with certain material resources and performing a certain social function.

So, each social institution is characterized by the presence of the goal of its activity, specific functions that ensure the achievement of such a goal, a set of social positions and roles typical for this institution. Based on the foregoing, we can give the following definition of a social institution. Social institutions are organized associations of people performing certain socially significant functions, ensuring the joint achievement of goals based on the social roles performed by members, set by social values, norms and patterns of behavior.

It is necessary to distinguish between such concepts as “social institution” and “organization”.


1. The concept of "social institution" and "social organization"

Social institutions (from Latin institutum - establishment, establishment) are historically established stable forms of organizing joint activities of people.

Social institutions govern the behavior of community members through a system of sanctions and rewards. AT social management and control institutions play a very important role. Their task is not only to coercion. In every society there are institutions that guarantee freedom in certain types of activity - freedom of creativity and innovation, freedom of speech, the right to receive a certain form and amount of income, housing and free medical care, etc. For example, writers and artists have guaranteed freedom creativity, search for new artistic forms; scientists and specialists are obliged to investigate new problems and search for new technical solutions, etc. Social institutions can be characterized in terms of both their external, formal (“material”) structure, and their internal, content.

Outwardly, a social institution looks like a set of individuals, institutions, equipped with certain material resources and performing a specific social function. From the content side, it is a certain system of expediently oriented standards of behavior of certain individuals in specific situations. So, if there is justice as a social institution, it can be outwardly characterized as a set of persons, institutions and material means administering justice, then from a substantive point of view, it is a set of standardized patterns of behavior of eligible persons providing this social function. These standards of conduct are embodied in certain roles characteristic of the justice system (the role of a judge, prosecutor, lawyer, investigator, etc.).

The social institution thus determines the orientation social activities and social relations through a mutually agreed upon system of expediently oriented standards of conduct. Their emergence and grouping into a system depend on the content of the tasks solved by the social institution. Each such institution is characterized by the presence of an activity goal, specific functions that ensure its achievement, a set of social positions and roles, as well as a system of sanctions that ensure the promotion of desired and the suppression of deviant behavior.

Consequently, social institutions perform in society the functions of social management and social control as one of the elements of management. Social control enables society and its systems to enforce regulatory conditions that are detrimental to violation. social system. The main objects of such control are legal and moral norms, customs, administrative decisions, etc. The effect of social control is reduced, on the one hand, to the application of sanctions against behavior that violates social restrictions, on the other hand, to the approval of desirable behavior. The behavior of individuals is conditioned by their needs. These needs can be met different ways, and the choice of means to satisfy them depends on the value system adopted by a given social community or society as a whole. The adoption of a certain system of values ​​contributes to the identity of the behavior of members of the community. Education and socialization are aimed at conveying to individuals the patterns of behavior and methods of activity established in a given community.

Scientists understand a social institution as a complex, covering, on the one hand, a set of normative and value-conditioned roles and statuses designed to meet certain social needs, and on the other hand, social education, created to use the resources of society in the form of interaction to meet this need.

Social institutions and social organizations are closely linked. There is no consensus among sociologists about how they relate to each other. Some believe that there is no need to distinguish between these two concepts at all, they use them as synonyms, since many social phenomena, such as the social security system, education, the army, the court, the bank, can be simultaneously considered both as a social institution and as social organization, while others give a more or less clear distinction between them. The difficulty of drawing a clear “watershed” between these two concepts is due to the fact that social institutions in the process of their activity act as social organizations - they are structurally designed, institutionalized, have their own goals, functions, norms and rules. The difficulty lies in the fact that when trying to isolate social organization as an independent structural component or social phenomenon, one has to repeat those properties and features that are also characteristic of a social institution.

It should also be noted that, as a rule, there are much more organizations than institutions. For the practical implementation of the functions, goals and objectives of one social institution, several specialized social organizations are often formed. For example, on the basis of the institute of religion, various church and religious organizations, churches and confessions (Orthodoxy, Catholicism, Islam, etc.)

2. Types of social institutions

Social institutions differ from each other in their functional qualities: 1) Economic and social institutions - property, exchange, money, banks, economic associations of various types - provide the entire set of production and distribution of social wealth, combining, at the same time, economic life with other areas of social life.

2) Political institutions - the state, parties, trade unions and other kinds public organizations pursuing political goals aimed at establishing and maintaining a certain form of political power. Their totality constitutes the political system of a given society. Political institutions ensure the reproduction and sustainable preservation of ideological values, stabilize the dominant social class structures. 3) Sociocultural and educational institutions aim at the development and subsequent reproduction of cultural and social values, the inclusion of individuals in a certain subculture, as well as the socialization of individuals through the assimilation of stable sociocultural standards of behavior and, finally, the protection of certain values ​​and norms. 4) Normative-orienting - mechanisms of moral and ethical orientation and regulation of the behavior of individuals. Their goal is to give behavior and motivation a moral argument, ethical basis. These institutions assert imperative universal human values, special codes and ethics of behavior in the community. 5) Normative-sanctioning - social and social regulation of behavior on the basis of norms, rules and regulations enshrined in legal and administrative acts. The binding nature of the norms is ensured by the coercive power of the state and the system of appropriate sanctions. 6) Ceremonial-symbolic and situational-conventional institutions. These institutions are based on the more or less long-term adoption of conventional (by agreement) norms, their official and unofficial consolidation. These norms regulate everyday contacts, various acts of group and intergroup behavior. They determine the order and method of mutual behavior, regulate the methods of transmission and exchange of information, greetings, addresses, etc., the rules of meetings, meetings, the activities of some associations.

Introduction

1. The concept of "social institution" and "social organization".

2. Types of social institutions.

3. Functions and structure of social institutions.

Conclusion

List of used literature


Introduction

The term "social institution" is used in a wide variety of meanings. They talk about the institution of the family, the institution of education, health care, the institution of the state, etc. The first, most often used meaning of the term "social institution" is associated with the characteristics of any kind of ordering, formalization and standardization of social relations and relations. And the process of streamlining, formalization and standardization is called institutionalization.

The process of institutionalization includes a number of points: 1) One of the necessary conditions for the emergence of social institutions is the corresponding social need. Institutions are designed to organize the joint activities of people in order to meet certain social needs. Thus, the institution of the family satisfies the need for the reproduction of the human race and the upbringing of children, implements relations between the sexes, generations, etc. The institution of higher education provides training for the workforce, enables a person to develop his abilities in order to realize them in subsequent activities and ensure his own existence, etc. The emergence of certain social needs, as well as the conditions for their satisfaction, are the first necessary moments of institutionalization. 2) A social institution is formed on the basis of social ties, interactions and relationships of specific individuals, individuals, social groups and other communities. But it, like other social systems, cannot be reduced to the sum of these individuals and their interactions. Social institutions are supra-individual in nature, have their own systemic quality.

Consequently, a social institution is an independent public entity that has its own logic of development. From this point of view, social institutions can be considered as organized social systems characterized by the stability of the structure, the integration of their elements and a certain variability of their functions.

3) The third essential element of institutionalization

is the organizational design of a social institution. Outwardly, a social institution is a collection of persons, institutions, equipped with certain material resources and performing a certain social function.

So, each social institution is characterized by the presence of the goal of its activity, specific functions that ensure the achievement of such a goal, a set of social positions and roles typical for this institution. Based on the foregoing, we can give the following definition of a social institution. Social institutions are organized associations of people performing certain socially significant functions, ensuring the joint achievement of goals based on the social roles performed by members, set by social values, norms and patterns of behavior.

It is necessary to distinguish between such concepts as “social institution” and “organization”.


1. The concept of "social institution" and "social organization"

Social institutions (from Latin institutum - establishment, establishment) are historically established stable forms of organizing joint activities of people.

Social institutions govern the behavior of community members through a system of sanctions and rewards. In social management and control, institutions play a very important role. Their task is not only to coercion. In every society there are institutions that guarantee freedom in certain types of activity - freedom of creativity and innovation, freedom of speech, the right to receive a certain form and amount of income, housing and free medical care, etc. For example, writers and artists have guaranteed freedom creativity, search for new artistic forms; scientists and specialists are obliged to investigate new problems and search for new technical solutions, etc. Social institutions can be characterized in terms of both their external, formal (“material”) structure, and their internal, content.

Outwardly, a social institution looks like a set of individuals, institutions, equipped with certain material resources and performing a specific social function. From the content side, it is a certain system of expediently oriented standards of behavior of certain individuals in specific situations. So, if there is justice as a social institution, it can be outwardly characterized as a set of persons, institutions and material means administering justice, then from a substantive point of view, it is a set of standardized patterns of behavior of eligible persons providing this social function. These standards of conduct are embodied in certain roles characteristic of the justice system (the role of a judge, prosecutor, lawyer, investigator, etc.).

The social institution thus determines the orientation of social activity and social relations through a mutually agreed system of expediently oriented standards of behavior. Their emergence and grouping into a system depend on the content of the tasks solved by the social institution. Each such institution is characterized by the presence of an activity goal, specific functions that ensure its achievement, a set of social positions and roles, as well as a system of sanctions that ensure the promotion of desired and the suppression of deviant behavior.

Consequently, social institutions perform in society the functions of social management and social control as one of the elements of management. Social control enables society and its systems to enforce normative conditions, the violation of which is detrimental to the social system. The main objects of such control are legal and moral norms, customs, administrative decisions, etc. The effect of social control is reduced, on the one hand, to the application of sanctions against behavior that violates social restrictions, on the other hand, to the approval of desirable behavior. The behavior of individuals is conditioned by their needs. These needs can be satisfied in various ways, and the choice of means to satisfy them depends on the value system adopted by a given social community or society as a whole. The adoption of a certain system of values ​​contributes to the identity of the behavior of members of the community. Education and socialization are aimed at conveying to individuals the patterns of behavior and methods of activity established in a given community.

Scientists understand a social institution as a complex, covering, on the one hand, a set of normative and value-conditioned roles and statuses designed to meet certain social needs, and on the other hand, a social education created to use society's resources in the form of interaction to meet this need.

Social institutions and social organizations are closely linked. There is no consensus among sociologists about how they relate to each other. Some believe that there is no need to distinguish between these two concepts at all, they use them as synonyms, since many social phenomena, such as the social security system, education, the army, the court, the bank, can be simultaneously considered both as a social institution and as social organization, while others give a more or less clear distinction between them. The difficulty of drawing a clear “watershed” between these two concepts is due to the fact that social institutions in the process of their activity act as social organizations - they are structurally designed, institutionalized, have their own goals, functions, norms and rules. The difficulty lies in the fact that when trying to single out a social organization as an independent structural component or a social phenomenon, one has to repeat those properties and features that are also characteristic of a social institution.

It should also be noted that, as a rule, there are much more organizations than institutions. For the practical implementation of the functions, goals and objectives of one social institution, several specialized social organizations are often formed. For example, on the basis of the institute of religion, various church and religious organizations, churches and confessions (Orthodoxy, Catholicism, Islam, etc.)

2. Types of social institutions

Social institutions differ from each other in their functional qualities: 1) Economic and social institutions - property, exchange, money, banks, business associations of various types - provide the entire set of production and distribution of social wealth, at the same time connecting economic life with other areas of social life.

2) Political institutions - the state, parties, trade unions and other kinds of public organizations pursuing political goals aimed at establishing and maintaining a certain form of political power. Their totality constitutes the political system of a given society. Political institutions ensure the reproduction and sustainable preservation of ideological values, and stabilize the social class structures that dominate in society. 3) Sociocultural and educational institutions aim at the development and subsequent reproduction of cultural and social values, the inclusion of individuals in a certain subculture, as well as the socialization of individuals through the assimilation of stable sociocultural standards of behavior and, finally, the protection of certain values ​​and norms. 4) Normative-orienting - mechanisms of moral and ethical orientation and regulation of the behavior of individuals. Their goal is to give behavior and motivation a moral argument, an ethical basis. These institutions assert imperative universal human values, special codes and ethics of behavior in the community. 5) Normative-sanctioning - social and social regulation of behavior on the basis of norms, rules and regulations enshrined in legal and administrative acts. The binding nature of the norms is ensured by the coercive power of the state and the system of appropriate sanctions. 6) Ceremonial-symbolic and situational-conventional institutions. These institutions are based on the more or less long-term adoption of conventional (by agreement) norms, their official and unofficial consolidation. These norms regulate everyday contacts, various acts of group and intergroup behavior. They determine the order and method of mutual behavior, regulate the methods of transmission and exchange of information, greetings, addresses, etc., the rules of meetings, meetings, the activities of some associations.

Violation of the normative interaction with the social environment, which is the society or community, is called the dysfunction of a social institution. As noted earlier, the basis for the formation and functioning of a particular social institution is the satisfaction of a particular social need. Under the conditions of intensive social processes, the acceleration of the pace of social change, a situation may arise when the changed social needs are not adequately reflected in the structure and functions of the relevant social institutions. As a result, dysfunction may occur in their activities. From a substantive point of view, dysfunction is expressed in the ambiguity of the goals of the institution, the uncertainty of functions, in the fall of its social prestige and authority, the degeneration of its individual functions into "symbolic", ritual activity, that is, activity not aimed at achieving a rational goal.

One of the clear expressions of the dysfunction of a social institution is the personalization of its activities. A social institution, as you know, functions according to its own, objectively operating mechanisms, where each person, on the basis of norms and patterns of behavior, in accordance with his status, plays certain roles. The personalization of a social institution means that it ceases to act in accordance with objective needs and objectively set goals, changing its functions depending on interests. individuals, their personal qualities and properties.

An unsatisfied social need can bring to life the spontaneous emergence of normatively unregulated activities that seek to make up for the dysfunction of the institution, but at the cost of violating existing norms and rules. In its extreme forms, activity of this kind can be expressed in illegal activities. Thus, the dysfunction of some economic institutions is the reason for the existence of the so-called "shadow economy", resulting in speculation, bribery, theft, etc. Correction of dysfunction can be achieved by changing the social institution itself or by creating a new social institution that satisfies a given social need.

Researchers distinguish two forms of the existence of social institutions: simple and complex. Simple social institutions are organized associations of people who perform certain socially significant functions that ensure the joint achievement of goals based on the members of the institution fulfilling their social roles, determined by social values, ideals, and norms. At this level, the control system did not stand out as an independent system. Social values, ideals, norms themselves ensure the sustainability of the existence and functioning of a social institution.

The most important social institutions are political ones. With their help, political power is established and maintained. Economic institutions provide the process of production and distribution of goods and services. The family is also one of the important social institutions. Its activities (relations between parents, parents and children, methods of education, etc.) are determined by a system of legal and other social norms. Along with these institutions, such socio-cultural institutions as the education system, health care, social Security, cultural and educational institutions, etc. The institute of religion continues to play a significant role in society

3.Functions and structure of social institutions

The sociological approach captures Special attention on the social functions of the institute and its normative structure. In particular, the implementation of socially significant functions by the institution is ensured by the presence within the framework of the social institution of an integral system of standardized patterns of behavior, i.e. value-normative structure.

The most important functions that social institutions perform in society include:

Regulation of the activities of members of society within the framework of social relations;

Creating opportunities to meet the needs of members of society;

Ensuring social integration, sustainability of public life;

Socialization of individuals.

The structure of social institutions most often includes a certain set of constituent elements that appear in a more or less formalized form, depending on the type of institution. Here we can distinguish the following structural elements of a social institution:

The purpose and scope of the institute;

Functions provided to achieve the goal;

Normatively determined social roles and statuses presented in the structure of the institute;

Means and institutions to achieve the goal and implement functions.

Of all the possible criteria for the classification of social institutions, it is advisable to dwell on two: subject (substantive) and formalized. Based on the subject criterion, i.e. the nature of the substantive tasks performed by institutions, the following are distinguished: political institutions (state, parties, army); economic institutions (division of labor, property, taxes, etc.); institutions of kinship, marriage and family; institutions operating in the spiritual sphere (education, culture, mass communications, etc.)

Based on the second criterion, i.e. nature of the organization, institutions are divided into formal and informal. The activities of the former are based on strict, normative and, possibly, legally fixed prescriptions, rules, instructions, etc. in informal institutions there is no such regulation of social roles, functions, means and methods of activity and sanctions for non-normative behavior. It is replaced by informal regulation through traditions, customs, social norms, etc.

Each social institution is included in a historically specific social structure, corresponds to the interests of a particular social group, performs a number of interrelated functions, such as: 1) reproduction of representatives of a particular social group; 2) the socialization of specific individuals in the form of the transfer of socially significant norms and values ​​to them; 3) maintaining stability and moral order of an intra-institutional nature, and also has an external justification, which is realized in the processes of social exchange. At the same time, it is important to emphasize that individual organizations and specific social groups in themselves do not constitute a social institution, and therefore the description, analysis of functions and forecast of development trends of a well-defined social institution cannot be reduced to considering only its “visible incarnations” and require a reasonable combination of a systemic and interdisciplinary approach with an approach specifically historical and empirical.

Conclusion

Thus, social institutions are specific formations that ensure the relative stability of ties and relations within the framework of the social organization of society, some historically determined forms of organization and regulation of public life. Institutions arise in the course of the development of human society, the differentiation of activities, the division of labor, the formation of specific types of social relations.

Common features of a social institution include:

Identification of a certain circle of subjects entering into relationships that acquire a stable character in the process of activity;

A certain (more or less formalized) organization;

The presence of specific norms and regulations governing the behavior of people within the framework of a social institution;

The presence of socially significant functions of the institution, integrating it into the social system and ensuring its participation in the process of integration of the latter.

These signs are not normatively fixed, they rather follow from the generalization of analytical materials about various social institutions of modern society. But in general, they are a convenient tool for analyzing the processes of institutionalization of social formations.

Social practice shows that for human society it is necessary to consolidate certain types of social relations, to make them mandatory.

Social institutions are the pillars of society, symbols of order and organization.

Institutional ties, like other forms of social ties on the basis of which social communities are formed, represent an ordered system, a certain social organization. This is a system of accepted activities of social communities, norms and values ​​that guarantee similar behavior of their members, coordinate and direct people's aspirations in a certain direction, establish ways to meet their needs, resolve conflicts that arise in the process of everyday life, provide a state of balance between the aspirations of various individuals. and groups of a given social community and society as a whole. In the case when this balance begins to fluctuate, one speaks of social disorganization, of the intensive manifestation of undesirable phenomena (for example, such as crimes, alcoholism, aggressive actions, etc.).

List of used literature

2. Anikev A. G. Political power: Questions of research methodology, Krasnoyarsk. 2001. Power: Essays on the Modern Political Philosophy of the West. M., 2003

3. Vouchelin E.F. Family and kinship // American sociology. M., 2006. S. 163 - 173.

4. Zemskirin M. Family and personality. M., 2002.

5. Cohen J. The structure of sociological theory. M., 2002.

6. Leimanigin I.I. Science as a social institution. L., 2005.

7. Matskovskov M.S. Sociology of the family. Problems of theory, methodology and methodology. M., 2002.

8. Titmonagin A. To the question of the prerequisites for the institutionalization of science // Sociological problems of science. M., 2004.

9. Trotsin M. Sociology of education // American sociology. M., 2001. S. 174 - 187.

10. Kharachevin G.G. Marriage and family in Russia. M., 2003.

11. Kharachevin A.G., Matskovsky M.S. Modern family and its problems. M., 2001.

Social institutions (from lat. tzShisht - establishment, establishment) are historically established stable forms of organizing the joint activities of people. The term "social institution" is used in a wide variety of meanings. They talk about the institution of the family, the institution of education, health care, the institution of the state, etc. The first, most often used meaning of the term “social institution” is associated with the characteristics of any kind of ordering, formalization and standardization of social ties and relations. And the process of streamlining, formalization and standardization is called institutionalization.
The process of institutionalization includes a number of points. One of the necessary conditions for the emergence of social institutions is the corresponding social need. Institutions are designed to organize the joint activities of people in order to meet certain social needs. Thus, the institution of the family satisfies the need for the reproduction of the human race and the upbringing of children, implements relations between the sexes, generations, etc. The institution of higher education provides training for the workforce, enables a person to develop his abilities in order to realize them in subsequent activities and provide its existence, etc. The emergence of certain social needs, as well as the conditions for their satisfaction, are the first necessary moments of institutionalization. A social institution is formed on the basis of social ties, interactions and relationships of specific individuals, individuals, social groups and other communities. But it, like other social systems, cannot be reduced to the sum of these individuals and their interactions. Social institutions are supra-individual in nature, have their own systemic quality. Consequently, a social institution is an independent public entity that has its own logic of development. From this point of view, social institutions can be considered as organized social systems characterized by the stability of the structure, the integration of their elements and a certain variability of their functions.
What are these systems? What are their main elements? First of all, it is a system of values, norms, ideals, as well as patterns of activity and behavior of people and other elements of the sociocultural process. This system guarantees similar behavior of people, coordinates and directs their certain aspirations, establishes ways to satisfy their needs, resolves conflicts that arise in the process of everyday life, provides a state of balance and stability within a particular social community and society as a whole. In itself, the presence of these socio-cultural elements does not yet ensure the functioning of a social institution. In order for it to work, it is necessary that they become the property of the inner world of the individual, be internalized by them in the process of socialization, embodied in the form of social roles and statuses. The internalization by individuals of all sociocultural elements, the formation on their basis of a system of personality needs, value orientations and expectations is the second most important element of institutionalization. The third most important element of institutionalization is the organizational design of a social institution. Outwardly, a social institution is a collection of persons, institutions, equipped with certain material resources and performing a certain social function. Thus, an institution of higher education consists of a certain set of persons: teachers, service personnel, officials who operate within institutions such as universities, the ministry or the State Committee for high school etc., who have certain material assets (buildings, finances, etc.) for their activities.
So, each social institution is characterized by the presence of the goal of its activity, specific functions that ensure the achievement of such a goal, a set of social positions and roles typical for this institution. Based on all of the above, we can give the following definition of a social institution. Social institutions are organized associations of people performing certain socially significant functions, ensuring the joint achievement of goals based on the social roles performed by members, set by social values, norms and patterns of behavior.
2

More on the topic The concept of "social institution". Institutionalization of public life:

  1. The concepts of society and system, social ties, social interaction, social relations. System analysis of social life

Social institutions (from Latin institutum - establishment, establishment) are historically established stable forms of organizing joint activities of people.

The term "social institution" is used in a wide variety of meanings. They talk about the institution of the family, the institution of education, health care, the institution of the state, etc. The first, most often used meaning of the term "social institution" is associated with the characteristics of any kind of ordering, formalism and standardization of social ties and relations. And the process of streamlining, formalization and standardization is called institutionalization. Andreev Yu.P. Category "social institution" // Philosophical sciences. - 2008. - No. 1.

The following types of social institutions are distinguished: economics, politics, religion, morality, art, family, science, education, etc.

Social institutions perform in society the functions of social management and social control as one of the elements of management.

Social control enables society and its systems to enforce normative conditions, the violation of which is detrimental to the social system. The main objects of such control are legal and moral norms, customs, administrative decisions, etc. The effect of social control is reduced, on the one hand, to the application of sanctions against behavior that violates social restrictions, on the other hand, to the approval of desirable behavior. The behavior of individuals is conditioned by their needs. These needs can be satisfied in various ways, and the choice of means to satisfy them depends on the value system adopted by a given social community or society as a whole. The adoption of a certain system of values ​​contributes to the identity of the behavior of members of the community. Education and socialization are aimed at conveying to individuals the patterns of behavior and methods of activity established in a given community.

Social institutions govern the behavior of community members through a system of sanctions and rewards. In social management and control, institutions play a very important role. Their task is not only to coercion. In every society there are institutions that guarantee freedom in certain types of activity - freedom of creativity and innovation, freedom of speech, the right to receive a certain form and amount of income, housing and free medical care, etc. For example, writers and artists have guaranteed freedom creativity, search for new artistic forms; scientists and specialists are obliged to investigate new problems and search for new technical solutions, etc. Social institutions can be characterized in terms of both their external, formal ("material") structure, and internal, content.

Outwardly, a social institution looks, as noted above, as a set of individuals, institutions, equipped with certain material resources and performing a specific social function. From the content side, it is a certain system of expediently oriented standards of behavior of certain individuals in specific situations. So, if justice as a social institution can be outwardly characterized as a set of persons, institutions and material means administering justice, then from a substantive point of view, it is a set of standardized patterns of behavior of eligible persons providing this social function. These standards of conduct are embodied in certain roles characteristic of the justice system (the role of a judge, prosecutor, lawyer, investigator, etc.).

The most important social institutions are political ones. With their help, political power is established and maintained. Economic institutions provide the process of production and distribution of goods and services. The family is also one of the important social institutions. Its activities (relations between parents, parents and children, methods of education, etc.) are determined by a system of legal and other social norms. Along with these institutions, such socio-cultural institutions as the education system, health care, social security, cultural and educational institutions, etc., are also of significant importance. The institution of religion still plays a significant role in society.

Each social institution is characterized by:

the presence of the purpose of their activities;

a set of social positions and roles typical for a given institution;

specific functions to achieve this goal.

Let us consider in more detail these characteristic features of a social institution.




Top