The functions of social institutions include: Social institutions and their functions

Social Institute– historically established, stable forms of organizing joint activities of people; organized system social connections and norms, designed to satisfy the basic needs of society, social groups and individuals.

Conditions for the emergence of a system of social institutions:

a) a social need for a given institution must exist in society and be recognized by the majority of individuals;

b) society must have the necessary means of satisfying this need - resources (material, labor, organizational), a system of functions, actions, individual goal-setting, symbols and norms that form the cultural environment on the basis of which a new institution will be formed.

Social institutions– 1) elements of society, representing stable forms of organization and regulation of social life; 2) value-normative complexes (values, rules, norms, attitudes, patterns, standards of behavior in certain situations), as well as bodies and organizations that ensure their implementation and approval in the life of society; 3) a certain organization of social activities and social relations, carried out through standards of behavior, the emergence and grouping of which into a system are determined by the content of a specific task solved by this institution.

Main features (signs) of a social institution:

1. Each institute has its own goal of activity, mission, ideology.

2. Has organized system formal and informal structures.

3. Defines a system of cultural patterns, customs, traditions, values, symbols, rules of human behavior and a stable set of social actions (behavior) in accordance with these norms and patterns.

4. Clearly defines the functions, rights and responsibilities of interaction participants to achieve the goal.

5. Possesses certain means (material and by human resourses) and institutions to achieve the goal. They can be both material and ideal, symbolic.

6. Positions a certain system sanctions that encourage desired behavior and suppress deviant behavior.

The structure of a social institution includes: social groups and organizations designed to satisfy the needs of groups and individuals; a set of norms social values and patterns of behavior that ensure satisfaction of needs; a system of symbols regulating relations in a certain field of activity (trademark, flag, brand, etc.); ideological justifications for the activities of a social institution; social resources used in the activities of the institute.

primary goal social institutions – achieving stability during the development of society

Types of social institutions are classified:

1. By spheres of society: a) economic(division of labor, property, market, trade, wage, banking system, stock exchange, management, marketing, etc.); b) political(state, army, police, parliamentarism, presidency, monarchy, court, parties, civil society); V) stratification and kinship(class, estate, caste, gender discrimination, racial segregation, nobility, social security, family, marriage, paternity, maternity, adoption, twinning); G) culture(school, high school, secondary professional education, theaters, museums, clubs, libraries, church, monasticism, confession).

2. Depending on their field of activity: a) relational institutions(for example, insurance, labor, production) determine the role structure of society based on a certain set of characteristics; b) regulatory institutions determine the boundaries of an individual’s independence and his actions to achieve his own goals. This group includes institutions of the state, government, social protection, business, healthcare.

3. According to functional qualities.

4. By lifetime, etc.

Social institutions are distinguished by the diversity and dynamism of their functions.

Types of functions of social institutions

A) General features: 1. The function of consolidating and reproducing social relations is a system of rules and norms of behavior that consolidate, standardize the behavior of each member of the institution and make this behavior predictable; 2. Regulatory function – a pattern of behavior, norms and control developed by a social institution that regulates relationships between members of society (i.e. a social institution as an element of social control); 3. Integrative function – processes of cohesion, interdependence and mutual responsibility of members of social groups; 4. Transmitting function – transfer of social experience, allowing individuals to socialize to its values, norms and roles; 5. Communication function - the dissemination of information both within the institute for the purpose of managing and monitoring compliance with standards, and its transfer in interaction with other institutions.

B) Selected functions:

– the social institution of marriage and family implements the function of reproduction of members of society together with the relevant departments of the state and private enterprises (antenatal clinics, maternity hospitals, a network of children's medical institutions, bodies for supporting and strengthening the family, etc.);

– the social health institute is responsible for maintaining the health of the population (clinics, hospitals and other medical institutions, as well as state bodies organizing the process of maintaining and strengthening health);

– the social institution of production of means of subsistence performs a creative function;

– the social institution of law performs the function of developing legal documents and is in charge of compliance with laws and legal norms, etc.

IN) R. Merton proposed to distinguish between “explicit” and “hidden (latent)” functions. Explicit - officially accepted, recognized and controlled by society; hidden - performed hidden or unintentionally. When these functions diverge, a double standard of social relations arises, which threatens the stability of society, since, along with official institutions, “shadow” institutions are formed that take on the function of regulating the most important social relations (for example, criminal structures).

Since society is a dynamic system, some institutions may disappear (the institution of slavery), while others may appear (the institution of advertising or the institution of civil society). The formation of a social institution is called a process institutionalization(the process of streamlining social relations, forming stable patterns of social interaction based on clear rules, laws, patterns and rituals).

Basic social institutions

1. Family as a social institution is characterized by a set of social norms, sanctions and patterns of behavior that regulate the relationships between spouses, parents and their children and other relatives. The family institution includes many more private institutions, such as the institution of marriage, the institution of kinship, the institution of motherhood and paternity, the institution of social protection of childhood, etc. Functions: economic, reproductive, educational, etc.

2. Social policy institutions: implement political power. Internal functions: economic, stabilization, coordination, ensuring the protection of the population, etc.; external functions: defense, international cooperation, etc.

3. Economic institutions: the institution of property, the system of trade and distribution, the financial system, the insurance system and other types of systematized economic activity. The economy as a social institution provides people with the material conditions of existence, is a systematizing component of society, a decisive sphere of its life, determining the course of all processes occurring in society. Main function: production and distribution of goods and services.

4. Education– a social cultural institution that ensures the reproduction and development of society through the organized transfer of social experience in the form of knowledge, skills, and abilities. Education contributes to the socialization of the individual and the development of personality, promotes its self-realization. Functions: adaptation, professional, civil, general cultural, humanistic, etc.

5. Right– a social institution, a system of generally binding norms and relations protected by the state. The main functions of law: regulatory (regulates social relations) and protective (protects those relations that are useful for society as a whole).

6. Religion– how a social institution can be defined as a system of socially accepted beliefs and corresponding practices. Functions: ideological, compensatory, integrating, general cultural, etc.

Institutions are numerous and varied in their forms and manifestations. Large institutions may include institutions of a lower level (for example, a court - institutions of the legal profession, prosecutor's office, judges). Each institution can satisfy several needs (the church is able to satisfy religious, moral, cultural needs), and the same need can be satisfied by different institutions (spiritual needs can be satisfied by art, science, religion, etc.).

Society consists of a system of social institutions and is a complex set of economic, political, legal, spiritual relations that ensure its integrity.

Social Institute- a historically established, stable form of organizing joint activities of people.

Social institutions are unique value-normative complexes that include values, rules, norms, attitudes, patterns, standards of behavior in certain situations, as well as bodies and organizations that ensure their implementation and approval in the life of society.

All elements of society are connected to each other public relations– connections that arise between and within social groups in the process of material (economic) and spiritual (political, legal, cultural) activities.

In the process of development of society, some connections die out, others appear. Connections that have proven their benefits to society are streamlined, become generally significant patterns and are subsequently repeated from generation to generation. The more stable these connections that are useful for society are, the more stable the society itself is.

Social institutions are elements of society that represent stable forms of regulation and organization of social life. The institutions of society - the state, education, family, etc. - organize social relations, regulate the activities of people and their behavior in society.

The main purpose of social institutions– achieving stability in the process of social development.

Functions of institutions:

Meeting the needs of society;

Regulation of social processes during which these needs are usually satisfied.

The needs satisfied by social institutions are extremely diverse. Each institute can satisfy several needs at once.

The process of satisfying needs can be regulated. For example, there are legal restrictions on the purchase of a number of goods (weapons, alcohol, tobacco). The process of meeting society's needs for education is regulated by institutions of primary, secondary, and higher education.

Institutionalization– the process of streamlining social relations, forming stable patterns of social coexistence, which is based on clear rules, laws, patterns and rituals. Thus, the process of institutionalization of science is the transformation of science from the activity of individuals into a clear system of relationships, including a system of academic degrees, titles, scientific institutes, academies, etc.

The main social institutions include culture, science, education, religion, family, state, and law.

Family- the most important social institution of kinship, which binds individuals through common life and mutual moral responsibility. The family performs a number of basic functions: economic (housekeeping), reproductive (having children), educational (transferring values, norms, models), etc.

State- the main political institution that governs society and ensures its security. The state performs internal functions - economic (regulating the economy), stabilization (maintaining stability in society), coordination (ensuring public harmony), ensuring the protection of the population (protecting rights, legality, social security), etc. In addition, there are external functions: defense (in case of war), integration and cooperation (in order to protect the interests of the country in the international arena).

Right– a social institution, or a system of generally binding norms and relations that are protected by the state. The state, with the help of law, regulates the behavior of people and social groups and establishes certain relationships as mandatory. The main functions of law: ensures standards of behavior in society and protects those relationships that are useful for society as a whole.

Culture– a social cultural institution that ensures the reproduction and development of society through the organized transfer of social experience in the form of knowledge, skills, and abilities. The main functions of education include adaptation, professional, civic, general cultural, humanistic, etc.

The science- an area of ​​human activity that is aimed at developing and systematizing objective knowledge about reality. The basis of this activity is the collection of facts, their constant updating and systematization, critical analysis, and subsequently the synthesis of new knowledge or generalizations that not only describe observed natural or social phenomena, but also make it possible to build cause-and-effect relationships with the ultimate goal of forecasting.

Education- the process of assimilation of knowledge, learning, the process by which society, through schools, colleges, universities and other institutions, purposefully transfers cultural heritage - accumulated knowledge, values ​​and skills - from one generation to another.

Religion- this is a worldview, attitude and the behavior of people determined by them based on belief in the existence of a supernatural sphere.

All the elements of social institutions presented above are illuminated from the point of view of social institutions, but other approaches to them are also possible. For example, science can be viewed not only as a social institution, but also as special shape cognitive activity or as a knowledge system; family is not only an institution, but also a small one social group.

Social institutions contribute to the consolidation and reproduction of specific social relations that are especially important for society, and in addition to the stability of the system in all main spheres of its life - economic, political, spiritual and social.

The essence of social institutions is to satisfy the most important needs and interests of society. In the course of its activities social institutions perform a number of functions:

function of consolidation and reproduction public relations. Each institution consolidates and standardizes the behavior of members of society through its own rules and norms of behavior;

regulatory function ensures the regulation of relations between individual members of society by developing patterns of behavior and regulating their actions;

integrative function consists in the process of interdependence and mutual responsibility of members of social groups;

broadcast function is responsible for the transfer of social experience from one generation to another and familiarization with the norms, values, and roles of each specific society.

Social institutions can be called the main components of the structure of society, which integrate and coordinate the entire mass of individual actions of people. The structure of social institutions and the relationships between them represent the framework that serves as the basis for the formation of society with all the ensuing consequences. How reliable the structure, the foundation, and the supporting components of society are, so great is its strength, solidity, stability, and fundamental nature.

Seminar No. 8.

Social institutions and social organizations.

Main questions:

1. The concept of a social institution and the main sociological approaches to it.

2. Signs of social institutions ( general characteristics). Types of social institutions.

3. Functions and dysfunctions of social institutions.

4. The concept of social organization and its main features.

5. Types and functions social organizations.

Basic Concepts: social institution, social needs, basic social institution, dynamics of social institutions, life cycle of a social institution, systematicity of social institutions, latent functions of social institutions, social organizations, social hierarchy, bureaucracy, civil society.

1) Social institution or public institution- a historically established or created by purposeful efforts form of organization of joint life activities of people, the existence of which is dictated by the need to satisfy the social, economic, political, cultural or other needs of society as a whole or part of it.

2) Social needs- Needs associated with certain aspects of social behavior - for example, the need for friendship, the need for the approval of others, or the desire for power.

Basic social institutions

TO main social institutions traditionally include family, state, education, church, science, law. Below is a brief description of these institutions and their main functions.

Family - the most important social institution of kinship, connecting individuals through a commonality of life and mutual moral responsibility. The family performs a number of functions: economic (housekeeping), reproductive (having children), educational (transferring values, norms, models), etc.

State- the main political institution that manages society and ensures its security. The state performs internal functions, including economic (regulating the economy), stabilization (maintaining stability in society), coordination (ensuring public harmony), ensuring the protection of the population (protecting rights, legality, social security) and many others. There are also external functions: defense (in case of war) and international cooperation (to protect the interests of the country in the international arena).

Education- a social cultural institution that ensures the reproduction and development of society through the organized transfer of social experience in the form of knowledge, skills and abilities. The main functions of education include adaptation (preparation for life and work in society), professional (training of specialists), civic (training of citizens), general cultural (introduction to cultural values), humanistic (discovery of personal potential), etc.

Church - a religious institution formed on the basis of a single religion. Church members share common norms, dogmas, rules of behavior and are divided into clergy and laity. The Church performs the following functions: ideological (determines views on the world), compensatory (offers consolation and reconciliation), integrating (unites believers), general cultural (introduces cultural values), etc.

The science- a special sociocultural institution for the production of objective knowledge. The functions of science include cognitive (promotes knowledge of the world), explanatory (interprets knowledge), ideological (determines views on the world), prognostic (makes forecasts), social (changes society) and productive (determines the production process).

Right- a social institution, a system of generally binding norms and relations protected by the state. The state, with the help of law, regulates the behavior of people and social groups, establishing certain relationships as mandatory. The main functions of law: regulatory (regulates social relations) and protective (protects those relations that are useful for society as a whole).

All the elements of social institutions discussed above are illuminated from the point of view of social institutions, but other approaches to them are also possible. For example, science can be considered not only as a social institution, but also as a special form of cognitive activity or as a system of knowledge; family is not only an institution, but also a small social group.

4) Under dynamics of social institutions understand three interrelated processes:

1. The life cycle of an institution from the moment of its appearance to its disappearance;
2. The functioning of a mature institution, i.e. the performance of overt and latent functions, the emergence and continuation of dysfunctions;
3. The evolution of an institution is a change in appearance, form and content in historical time, the emergence of new functions and the withering away of old functions.

5) Life cycle of the institute includes four relatively independent stages, which have their own qualitative characteristics:

Phase 1 - the emergence and formation of a social institution;

Phase 2 - the efficiency phase, during this period the institute reaches the peak of maturity, full bloom;

Phase 3 - the period of formalization of norms and principles, marked by bureaucracy, when the rules become an end in themselves;

Phase 4 - disorganization, disadaptation, when the institution loses its dynamism, former flexibility and vitality. The institute is liquidated or transformed into a new one.

6) Latent (hidden) functions of a social institution- the positive consequences of performing explicit functions that arise in the life of a social institution are not determined by the purpose of this institution. (Thus, the latent function of the family institution is social status, or the transfer of a certain social status from one generation to another within the family ).

7) Social organization of society (from late lat. organizio - form, give a slender appearance< lat. organum - tool, tool) - a normative social order established in society, as well as activities aimed at maintaining it or leading to it.

8) Social hierarchy- hierarchical structure of relations of power, income, prestige, and so on.

Social hierarchy reflects inequality of social status.

9) Bureaucracy- this is a social stratum of professional managers included in an organizational structure characterized by a clear hierarchy, “vertical” information flows, formalized methods of decision-making, and a claim to a special status in society.

Bureaucracy is also understood as a closed layer of senior officials, opposing themselves to society, occupying a privileged position in it, specializing in management, monopolizing power functions in society in order to realize their corporate interests

10) Civil society- is a set of social relations, formal and informal structures that provide conditions political activity human, satisfaction and realization of various needs and interests of the individual and social groups and associations. A developed civil society is the most important prerequisite for building rule of law and its equal partner.

Question No. 1,2.The concept of a social institution and the main sociological approaches to it.

Signs of social institutions (general characteristics). Types of social institutions.

The foundation on which the entire society is built are social institutions. The term comes from the Latin “institutum” - “charter”.

This concept was first introduced into scientific circulation by the American sociologist T. Veblein in his book “The Theory of the Leisure Class” in 1899.

A social institution in the broad sense of the word is a system of values, norms and connections that organize people to satisfy their needs.

Externally, a social institution looks like a collection of persons and institutions, equipped with certain material means and performing a specific social function.

Social institutions have historical origins and are in constant change and development. Their formation is called institutionalization.

Institutionalization is the process of defining and consolidating social norms, connections, statuses and roles, bringing them into a system that is capable of acting in the direction of satisfying some social need. This process consists of several stages:

1) the emergence of needs that can only be satisfied as a result of joint activities;

2) the emergence of norms and rules governing interaction to meet emerging needs;

3) adoption and implementation in practice of the emerging norms and rules;

4) creation of a system of statuses and roles covering all members of the institute.

Institutes have their own distinctive features:

1) cultural symbols (flag, coat of arms, anthem);

3) ideology, philosophy (mission).

Social institutions in society perform a significant set of functions:

1) reproductive – consolidation and reproduction of social relations, ensuring order and framework of activity;

2) regulatory – regulation of relationships between members of society by developing patterns of behavior;

3) socialization – transfer of social experience;

4) integrative - cohesion, interconnection and mutual responsibility of group members under the influence of institutional norms, rules, sanctions and a system of roles;

5) communicative – dissemination of information within the institute and to the external environment, maintaining relationships with other institutions;

6) automation – the desire for independence.

The functions performed by an institution can be explicit or latent.

The existence of latent functions of an institution allows us to talk about its ability to bring greater benefits to society than initially stated. Social institutions perform the functions of social management and social control in society.

Social institutions guide the behavior of community members through a system of sanctions and rewards.

The formation of a system of sanctions is the main condition for institutionalization. Sanctions provide for punishment for inaccurate, careless and incorrect performance of official duties.

Positive sanctions (gratitude, material rewards, creation of favorable conditions) are aimed at encouraging and stimulating correct and proactive behavior.

The social institution thus determines the orientation of social activity and social relations through a mutually agreed upon system of purposefully oriented standards of behavior. Their emergence and grouping into a system depend on the content of the tasks being 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 encouragement of desired behavior and the suppression of deviant behavior.

Social institutions always perform socially significant functions and ensure the achievement of relatively stable social connections and relationships within the framework of the social organization of society.

Social needs unsatisfied by the institution give rise to new forces and normatively unregulated activities. In practice, the following ways out of this situation can be implemented:

1) reorientation of old social institutions;

2) creation of new social institutions;

3) reorientation of public consciousness.

In sociology, there is a generally accepted system of classifying social institutions into five types, which is based on the needs realized through institutions:

1) family – reproduction of the clan and socialization of the individual;

2) political institutions - the need for security and public order, with their help political power is established and maintained;

3) economic institutions - production and livelihood, they ensure the process of production and distribution of goods and services;

4) institutions of education and science – the need for obtaining and transferring knowledge and socialization;

5) the institution of religion - solving spiritual problems, searching for the meaning of life.

The concept of “institution” (from Latin institutum - establishment, establishment) was borrowed by sociology from jurisprudence, where it was used to characterize a separate set of legal norms regulating social and legal relations in a certain subject area. Such institutions in legal science were considered, for example, inheritance, marriage, property, etc. In sociology, the concept of “institution” retained this semantic connotation, but acquired a broader interpretation in terms of designating some special type of stable regulation of social connections and various organizational forms of social regulating the behavior of subjects.

The institutional aspect of the functioning of society is a traditional area of ​​interest for sociological science. He was in the field of view of thinkers whose names are associated with its formation (O. Comte, G. Spencer, E. Durkheim, M. Weber, etc.).

O. Comte's institutional approach to the study of social phenomena stemmed from the philosophy of the positive method, when one of the objects of the sociologist's analysis was the mechanism for ensuring solidarity and consent in society. “For new philosophy, order is always a condition for progress and vice versa, progress is a necessary goal of order” (Konte O. Course of positive philosophy. St. Petersburg, 1899. P. 44). O. Comte considered the main social institutions (family, state, religion) from the standpoint of their inclusion in the processes of social integration and the functions they perform. Contrasting the family association and the political organization in terms of functional characteristics and the nature of connections, he acted as a theoretical predecessor of the concepts of dichotomization of social structure by F. Tönnies and E. Durkheim (“mechanical” and “organic” types of solidarity). O. Comte's social statics was based on the position that institutions, beliefs and moral values ​​of society are functionally interconnected, and the explanation of any social phenomenon in this integrity implies finding and describing the patterns of its interaction with other phenomena. O. Comte's method, his appeal to the analysis of the most important social institutions, their functions, and the structure of society had a significant influence on the further development of sociological thought.

The institutional approach to the study of social phenomena was continued in the works of G. Spencer. Strictly speaking, it was he who first used the concept of “social institution” in sociological science. G. Spencer considered the determining factors in the development of social institutions to be the struggle for existence with neighboring societies (war) and with the natural environment. The task of survival of a social organism in its conditions. evolution and complication of structures give rise, according to Spencer, to the need to form a special kind of regulatory institution: “In a state, as in a living body, a regulatory system inevitably arises... With the formation of a stronger community, higher centers of regulation and subordinate centers appear” (Spencer N. First principles. N.Y., 1898. P. 46).

Accordingly, the social organism consists of three main systems: regulatory, producing means of life and distributive. G. Spencer distinguished between such types of social institutions as kinship institutions (marriage, family), economic (distribution), regulatory (religion, political organizations). At the same time, much of his discussion of institutions is expressed in functional terms: “To understand how an organization arose and develops, one must understand the necessity that manifests itself in the beginning and in the future.” (Spencer N. The principles of ethics. N.Y., 1904. Vol. 1. P. 3). So, every social institution develops as a stable structure of social actions that performs certain functions.

The consideration of social institutions in a functional key was continued by E. Durkheim, who adhered to the idea of ​​​​the positivity of social institutions, which act as the most important means of human self-realization (see: Durkheim E. Les forms elementaires de la vie religieuse. Le systeme totemique en Australie. P., 1960) .

E. Durkheim spoke in favor of the creation of special institutions for maintaining solidarity in conditions of division of labor - professional corporations. He argued that corporations, unjustifiably considered anachronistic, were actually useful and modern. E. Durkheim calls corporations institutions such as professional organizations, including employers and workers, standing close enough to each other to be for each a school of discipline and a beginning with prestige and power (see: Durkheim E. O division of social labor. Odessa, 1900).

K. Marx paid noticeable attention to the consideration of a number of social institutions, who analyzed the institution of primogeniture, division of labor, institutions of the tribal system, private property, etc. He understood institutions as historically established forms of organization and regulation of social activity, conditioned by social, primarily production, relations.

M. Weber believed that social institutions (state, religion, law, etc.) should “be studied by sociology in the form in which they become significant for individuals, in which the latter actually focus on them in their actions” (History sociology in Western Europe and the USA. M., 1993. P. 180). Thus, discussing the question of the rationality of the society of industrial capitalism, he considered it (rationality) at the institutional level as a product of the separation of the individual from the means of production. An organic institutional element such social system acts as a capitalist enterprise, considered by M. Weber as a guarantor of the individual’s economic opportunities and thereby turning into structural component rationally organized society. A classic example is M. Weber’s analysis of the institution of bureaucracy as a type of legal domination, determined primarily by purposive and rational considerations. The bureaucratic management mechanism appears as modern type administration, which acts as the social equivalent of industrial forms of labor and “is related to previous forms of administration as machine production is to tire houses” (Weber M. Essays on sociology. N.Y., 1964. p. 214).

Representative of psychological evolutionism, American sociologist of the early 20th century. L. Ward viewed social institutions as a product of psychic forces rather than any other forces. “Social forces,” he wrote, “are the same psychic forces operating in the collective condition of man” (Ward L.F. The physical factors of civilization. Boston, 1893. P. 123).

In the school of structural-functional analysis, the concept of “social institution” plays one of the leading roles; T. Parsons builds a conceptual model of society, understanding it as a system of social relations and social institutions. Moreover, the latter are interpreted as specially organized “nodes”, “bundles” of social relations. IN general theory actions, social institutions act both as special value-normative complexes that regulate the behavior of individuals, and as stable configurations that form the status-role structure of society. The institutional structure of society is given the most important role, since it is it that is designed to ensure social order in society, its stability and integration (see: Parsons T. Essays on sociological theory. N.Y., 1964. P. 231-232). It should be emphasized that the normative-role concept of social institutions, which exists in structural-functional analysis, is the most widespread not only in Western, but also in domestic sociological literature.

In institutionalism (institutional sociology) social behavior people are studied in close connection with existing system social normative acts and institutions, the need for the emergence of which is equated to a natural historical pattern. Representatives of this direction include S. Lipset, J. Landberg, P. Blau, C. Mills and others. Social institutions, from the point of view of institutional sociology, involve “a consciously regulated and organized form of activity of the mass of people, the reproduction of repeating and most stable patterns behavior, habits, traditions passed on from generation to generation. “Each social institution included in a certain social structure, is organized to perform certain socially significant goals and functions (see; Osipov G.V., Kravchenko A.I. Institutional sociology//Modern Western sociology. Dictionary. M., 1990. P. 118).

Structural-functionalist and institutionalist interpretations of the concept of “social institution” do not exhaust the approaches to its definition presented in modern sociology. There are also concepts based on methodological foundations of a phenomenological or behaviorist plan. For example, W. Hamilton writes: “Institutions are a verbal symbol for better description groups of social customs. They mean a permanent way of thinking or acting that has become a habit for a group or a custom for a people. The world of customs and habits to which we adapt our lives is a plexus and continuous fabric of social institutions.” (Hamilton W. lnstitution//Encyclopedia of social sciences. Vol. VIII. P. 84).

The psychological tradition in line with behaviorism was continued by J. Homans. He gives the following definition of social institutions: “Social institutions are relatively stable models of social behavior, towards the maintenance of which the actions of many people are aimed” (Homans G.S. The sociological relevance of behaviorism//Behavioral sociology. Ed. R. Burgess, D. Bus-hell. N.Y., 1969. P. 6). Essentially, J. Homans builds his sociological interpretation of the concept of “institution” based on a psychological foundation.

Thus, in sociological theory there is a significant array of interpretations and definitions of the concept of “social institution”. They differ in their understanding of both the nature and functions of institutions. From the author’s point of view, searching for an answer to the question of which definition is correct and which is false is methodologically futile. Sociology is a multi-paradigm science. Within each paradigm, it is possible to build its own consistent conceptual apparatus, subject to internal logic. And it is up to the researcher working within the framework of the middle-level theory to decide on the choice of paradigm within which he intends to seek answers to the questions posed. The author adheres to approaches and logic that lie in line with systemic-structural constructions, this also determines the concept of a social institution that he takes as a basis,

Analysis of foreign and domestic scientific literature shows that within the framework of the chosen paradigm in understanding a social institution, there is a wide range of versions and approaches. Thus, a large number of authors consider it possible to give the concept of “social institution” an unambiguous definition based on one key word (expression). L. Sedov, for example, defines a social institution as “a stable complex of formal and informal rules, principles, guidelines, regulating various spheres of human activity and organizing them into a system of roles and statuses that form a social system” (quoted from: Modern Western Sociology. P. 117). N. Korzhevskaya writes: “A social institution is community of people fulfilling certain roles based on their objective position (status) and organized through social norms and goals (Korzhevskaya N. Social institution as social phenomenon(sociological aspect). Sverdlovsk, 1983. P. 11). J. Szczepanski gives the following integral definition: “Social institutions are institutional systems*, in which certain individuals, elected by group members, are empowered to perform public and impersonal functions to satisfy essential individual and social needs and to regulate the behavior of other group members." (Schepansky Ya. Elementary concepts of sociology. M., 1969. S. 96-97).

There are other attempts to give an unambiguous definition, based, for example, on norms and values, roles and statuses, customs and traditions, etc. From our point of view, approaches of this kind are not fruitful, since they narrow the understanding of such a complex phenomenon as social institution, fixing attention only on one side, which seems to one or another author to be its most important.

By social institution, these scientists understand a complex that covers, on the one hand, a set of normative and value-based roles and statuses designed to satisfy certain social needs, and on the other, a social entity created to use the resources of society in the form of interaction to satisfy this need ( cm.: Smelser N. Sociology. M., 1994. S. 79-81; Komarov M. S. On the concept of a social institution // Introduction to sociology. M., 1994. P. 194).

Social institutions are specific formations that ensure the relative stability of connections and relationships within the framework of the social organization of society, some historically determined forms of organization and regulation of social life. Institutions arise in the course of the development of human society, differentiation of activities, division of labor, and the formation of specific types of social relations. Their emergence is due to the objective needs of society in regulating socially significant areas of activity and social relations. In an emerging institution, a certain type of social relations is essentially objectified.

To the number common features social institutions include:

Identification of a certain circle of subjects who enter into relationships in the process of activity that become sustainable;

A specific (more or less formalized) organization:

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

The presence of socially significant functions of the institution that integrate it into the social system and ensure its participation in the process of integration of the latter.

These signs are not normatively fixed. They rather stem from a generalization of analytical materials about various institutions of modern society. In some of them (formal - army, court, etc.) the signs can be recorded clearly and in full, in others (informal or just emerging) - less clearly. But overall they are convenient tool to analyze the processes of institutionalization of social formations.

The sociological approach pays special attention to social functions institution and its regulatory structure. M. Komarov writes that the implementation of socially significant functions by an institution “is ensured by the presence within the framework of a social institution of an integral system of standardized patterns of behavior, i.e., a value-normative structure” (Komarov M. S. O concept of a social institution//Introduction to Sociology. P. 195).

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 community members;

Ensuring social integration, sustainability of public life; - socialization of individuals.

The structure of social institutions most often includes a certain set constituent elements, appearing in a more or less formalized form depending on the type of institution. J. Szczepanski identifies the following structural elements of a social institution: - the purpose and scope of activity of the institute; - functions provided to achieve the goal; - normatively determined social roles and statuses represented in the structure of the institute;

Means and institutions for achieving goals and implementing functions (material, symbolic and ideal), including appropriate sanctions (see: Shchepansky Ya. Decree. op. P. 98).

Various criteria for classifying social institutions are possible. Of these, we consider it appropriate to focus on two: substantive (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.), etc.

Based on the second criterion, i.e. the nature of the organization, institutions are divided into formal and informal. The activities of the former are based on strict, normative and, possibly, legally enforceable regulations, rules, and instructions. This is the state, army, court, etc. In informal institutions, such regulation of social roles, functions, means and methods of activity and sanctions for non-normative behavior is absent. It is being replaced by informal regulation through traditions, customs, social norms, etc. This does not make the informal institution cease to be an institution and to perform the corresponding regulatory functions.

Thus, when considering a social institution, its characteristics, functions, structure, the author relied on an integrated approach, the use of which has a developed tradition within the framework of the systemic-structural paradigm in sociology. It is the complex, but at the same time sociologically operational and methodologically rigorous interpretation of the concept of “social institution” that allows, from the author’s point of view, to analyze the institutional aspects of the existence of a social education.

Let's consider the possible logic of justifying an institutional approach to any social phenomenon.

According to the theory of J. Homans, in sociology there are four types of explanation and justification of social institutions. First - psychological type, based on the fact that any social institution is a psychological formation in genesis, a stable product of the exchange of activities. The second type is historical, considering institutions as the final product of the historical development of a certain field of activity. The third type is structural, which proves that “each institution exists as a consequence of its relationships with other institutions in the social system.” The fourth is functional, based on the proposition that institutions exist because they perform certain functions in society, contributing to its integration and the achievement of homeostasis. Homans declares the last two types of explanations for the existence of institutions, which are mainly used in structural-functional analysis, to be unconvincing and even erroneous (see: Homans G.S. The sociological relevance of behaviorism//Behavioral sociology. P. 6).

While not rejecting the psychological explanations of J. Homans, I do not share his pessimism regarding the last two types of argumentation. On the contrary, I consider these approaches convincing, working for modern societies and intend to take advantage of both functional, structural, and historical types justification for the existence of social institutions when studying the selected social phenomenon.

If it is proven that the functions of any studied phenomenon are socially significant, that their structure and nomenclature are close to the structure and nomenclature of the functions that social institutions perform in society, this will be an important step in justifying its institutional nature. This conclusion is based on the inclusion of a functional feature among the most important features of a social institution and on the understanding that it is social institutions that form the main element of the structural mechanism through which society regulates social homeostasis and, if necessary, carries out social changes.

The next stage of substantiating the institutional interpretation of our chosen hypothetical object is the analysis of ways of its inclusion in various spheres of social life, interaction with other social institutions, proof that it is an integral element of any one sphere of society (economic, political, cultural, etc.), or their combination, and ensures its (their) functioning. This logical operation is advisable for the reason that the institutional approach to the analysis of social phenomena is based on the idea that a social institution is a product of the development of the entire social system. system, but at the same time, the specificity of the basic mechanisms of its functioning depends on the internal patterns of development of the corresponding type of activity. Therefore, consideration of a particular institution is impossible without correlating its activities with the activities of other institutions, as well as systems of a more general order.

The third stage, following the functional and structural justification, is the most important. It is at this stage that the essence of the institution being studied is determined. Here the corresponding definition is formulated, based on an analysis of the main institutional features. the legitimacy of its institutional representation is affected. Then its specificity, type and place in the system of institutions of society are highlighted, and the conditions for the emergence of institutionalization are analyzed.

At the fourth and final stage, the structure of the institution is revealed, the characteristics of its main elements are given, and the patterns of its functioning are indicated.

Concept, signs, types, functions of social institutions

English philosopher and sociologist Herbert Spencer was the first to introduce the concept of a social institution into sociology and define it as a stable structure of social actions. He identified six types of social institutions : industrial, trade union, political, ritual, church, home. He considered the main purpose of social institutions to provide for the needs of members of society.

Consolidation and organization of relationships that develop in the process of meeting the needs of both society and the individual are carried out by creating a system of standard samples based on a generally shared system of values ​​- a common language, common ideals, values, beliefs, moral standards etc. They establish the rules of behavior of individuals in the process of their interaction, embodied in social roles. According to this, the American sociologist Neil Smelser calls a social institution “a set of roles and statuses designed to satisfy a specific social need”

Social institutions are classified according to different criteria. The most common classification is by goals (content of tasks) and scope of activity. In this case, it is customary to highlight economic, political, cultural and educational, social complexes of institutions:

- economic institutions – the most stable, subject to strict regulation, social ties in the sphere economic activity, are all macro-institutions that ensure the production and distribution of social wealth and services, regulate money turnover, are engaged in the organization and division of labor (industry, Agriculture, finance, trade). Macro institutions are built from such institutions as property, management, competition, pricing, bankruptcy, etc. Satisfy the needs for the production of means of subsistence;

- political institutions (state, Verkhovna Rada, political parties, court, prosecutor's office, etc.) - their activities are related to the establishment, execution and maintenance of a certain form of political power, the preservation and reproduction of ideological values. Satisfy the need for life safety and ensuring social order;

- institutions of culture and socialization (science, education, religion, art, various creative institutions) are the most stable, clearly regulated forms of interaction with the aim of creating, strengthening and disseminating culture (value system), scientific knowledge, socialization of the younger generation;

- Institute of family and marriage– contribute to the reproduction of the human race;

- social– organizing voluntary associations, the life of groups, i.e. regulating everyday social behavior of people, interpersonal relationships.

Within the main institutions are hidden non-main or non-core institutions. For example, within the institution of family and marriage, non-main institutions are distinguished: fatherhood and motherhood, family revenge (as an example of an informal social institution), naming, inheritance of the social status of parents.

By the nature of the target functions social institutions are divided into:

- normative-orienting, carry out the moral and ethical orientation of individual behavior, affirm universal human values, special codes and ethics of behavior in society;

- regulatory, regulate behavior on the basis of norms, rules, special postscripts enshrined in legal and administrative acts. The guarantor of their implementation is the state and its representative bodies;

- ceremonial-symbolic and situational-conventional, determine the rules of mutual behavior, regulate methods of information exchange, communicative forms of informal subordination (address, greeting, statements/non-statements).

Depending on the number of functions performed, the following are distinguished: monofunctional (enterprise) and multifunctional (family).

According to the criteria of the method of regulating behavior people are singled out formal and informal social institutions.

Formal social institutions. They base their activities on clear principles (legal acts, laws, decrees, regulations, instructions), carry out management and control functions on the basis of sanctions related to rewards and punishment (administrative and criminal). Such institutions include the state, the army, and the school. Their functioning is controlled by the state, which protects the accepted order of things by force of its power. Formal social institutions determine the strength of a society. They are regulated not only by written rules - most often we are talking about the interweaving of written and unwritten norms. For example, economic social institutions function on the basis not only of law, instructions, orders, but also of such an unwritten norm as loyalty this word, which often turns out to be stronger than dozens of laws or regulations. In some countries, bribery has become an unwritten norm, so widespread that it is a fairly stable element of the organization economic activity, although it is punishable by law.

When analyzing any formal social institution, it is necessary to examine not only formally recorded norms and rules, but also the entire system of standards, including moral standards, customs, and traditions that are consistently involved in regulating institutionalized interactions.

Informal social institutions. They do not have a clear regulatory framework, that is, interactions within these institutions are not formally established. They are the result of social creativity based on the will of citizens. Social control in such institutions is established with the help of norms enshrined in civil thought, traditions, and customs. These include various cultural and social foundations and interest associations. An example of informal social institutions can be friendship - one of the elements that characterizes the life of any society, an obligatory stable phenomenon of the human community. Regulation in friendship is quite complete, clear and sometimes even cruel. Resentment, quarrel, termination of friendly relations are unique forms of social control and sanctions in this social institution. But this regulation is not formalized in the form of laws or administrative regulations. Friendship has resources (trust, sympathy, duration of acquaintance, etc.), but no institutions. It has a clear demarcation (from love, relationships with colleagues, fraternal relations), but does not have a clear professional definition of the status, rights and responsibilities of partners. Another example of informal social institutions is the neighborhood, which is a significant element of social life. An example of an informal social institution would be the institution of blood feud, which is partially preserved among some peoples of the East.

All social institutions are, to varying degrees, united in a system that provides them with guarantees of a uniform, conflict-free process of functioning and reproduction of social life. All members of the community are interested in this. However, we must remember that in any society there is a certain share of the anomic, i.e. not subject to the normative order of behavior of the population. This circumstance can serve as the basis for destabilizing the system of social institutions.

There is a debate among scientists about which social institutions have the most significant impact on the nature of social relations. A significant portion of scientists believe that the most significant influence on the nature of changes in society is exerted by economic and political institutions. The first creates the material basis for the development of social relations, since a poor society is not able to develop science and education, and therefore, increase the spiritual and intellectual potential of social relations. The second creates laws and implements power functions, which makes it possible to highlight priorities and finance the development of certain areas of society. However, the development of educational and cultural institutions that will stimulate the economic progress of society and the development of its political system can lead to no less social changes.

The institutionalization of social connections, the acquisition by the latter of the properties of an institution, leads to the most profound transformations of social life, which acquires a fundamentally different quality.

First group of consequences- obvious consequences.

· The formation of an educational institution in place of sporadic, spontaneous and, perhaps, experimental attempts to transfer knowledge leads to a significant increase in the level of knowledge acquisition, enrichment of the intellect, personality abilities, and self-realization.

As a result, all social life is enriched and accelerated social development generally.

In fact, every social institution, on the one hand, contributes to better, more reliable satisfaction of the needs of individuals, and, on the other, to the acceleration of social development. Therefore, the more social needs are satisfied by specially organized institutions, the more multifaceted the society is developed, the qualitatively richer it is.

· The wider the area of ​​the institutionalized, the greater the predictability, stability, orderliness in the life of society and the individual. The zone in which a person is free from self-will, surprises, and hope for “maybe” is expanding.

It is no coincidence that the degree of development of a society is determined by the degree of development of social institutions: firstly, what type of motivation (and therefore norms, criteria, values) forms the basis of institutionalized interactions in a given society; secondly, how developed is the system of institutionalized systems of interactions in a given society, how wide is the range of social problems solved within the framework of specialized institutions; thirdly, how high is the level of orderliness of certain institutional interactions, of the entire system of institutions of society.

Second group of consequences– perhaps the most profound consequences.

We are talking about the consequences that are generated by the impersonality of requirements for someone who claims a certain function (or is already performing it). These requirements take the form of clearly fixed, unambiguously interpreted patterns of behavior - norms supported by sanctions.

Social organizations.

Society as a social reality is ordered not only institutionally, but also organizationally.

The term "organization" is used in three senses.

In the first case, an organization can be called an artificial association of an institutional nature that occupies a certain place in society and performs a certain function. In this sense, the organization acts as a social institution. In this sense, “organization” can be called an enterprise, government agency, voluntary union, etc.

In the second case, the term “organization” can denote a certain organization activity (distribution of functions, establishing stable connections, coordination, etc.). Here, organization acts as a process associated with a purposeful influence on an object, with the presence of an organizer and those being organized. In this sense, the concept of “organization” coincides with the concept of “management”, although it does not exhaust it.

In the third case, “organization” can be understood as a characteristic of the degree of orderliness of a social object. Then this term denotes a certain structure, structure and type of connections that act as a way of connecting parts into a whole. With this content, the term “organization” is used when talking about organized or unorganized systems. This is the meaning implied in the concepts of “formal” and “informal” organization.

Organization as a process of ordering and coordinating the behavior of individuals is inherent in all social formations.

Social organization– a social group focused on achieving interrelated specific goals and the formation of highly formalized structures.

According to P. Blau, only social formations, which in the scientific literature are usually referred to as “formal organizations”.

Traits (signs) of social organization

1. A clearly defined and declared goal that unites individuals based on a common interest.

2. It has a clear, generally binding order, a system of statuses and roles - a hierarchical structure (vertical division of labor). High level of formalization of relations. According to the rules, regulations, and routines, they cover the entire sphere of behavior of its participants, whose social roles are clearly defined, and relationships presuppose power and subordination.

3. Must have a coordinating body or management system.

4. Perform fairly stable functions in relation to society.

The importance of social organizations lies in the fact that:

Firstly, any organization consists of people involved in activities.

Secondly, it is focused on performing vital functions.

Thirdly, it initially involves control over the behavior and activities of people included in organizations.

Fourthly, it uses cultural means as an instrument of this regulation and is focused on achieving the set goal.

Fifthly, it focuses some basic social processes and problems.

Sixthly, the person himself uses a variety of services from organizations ( kindergarten, school, clinic, store, bank, trade union, etc.).

A necessary condition for the functioning of an organization is: firstly, combining disparate activities into a single process, synchronizing their efforts in order to achieve common goals and objectives, dictated by the needs of a wider society. Secondly, interest of individuals (groups) in cooperation as a means of realizing their own goals and solving their problems. This in turn suggests establishment of a certain social order, vertical division of labor, which is the third prerequisite for the formation of an organization. Performing a managerial function involves vesting persons specializing in this activity with certain powers - power and formal authority, i.e. the right to give instructions to subordinates and demand their implementation. From this moment, the persons performing basic activities and the person performing managerial functions enter into a leadership-subordination relationship, which involves limiting some of the freedom and activity of the former and transferring part of their sovereignty to them in favor of the latter. Recognition of the need for an employee to alienate part of his freedom and sovereignty in favor of another person in order to ensure the necessary level of coordination of actions and social order is a condition and prerequisite for the formation of an organization and its activities. In this regard, it is imperative to identify people in the group with power and authority. This type of worker is called head, and the type of specialized activity he performs is management. Managers take on the functions of goal setting, planning, connection programming, synchronization and coordination of basic activities, and monitoring their results. Establishing and recognizing the power of one person over another– one of the important components of the formation of an organization.

The next component of the formation of organizational relations, complementing and at the same time limiting the power of the leader, is formation of general universal rules and social norms, sociocultural standards, regulations regulating activities and organizational interactions. The formation and internalization of common rules and social norms governing the behavior of people in an organization helps to increase sustainability social interactions behavior of participants in the activity. Associated with the formation of predictable and stable relationships, ensuring a certain level of stability in people's behavior. It involves the consolidation of power, a system of rights, duties, subordination and responsibility in a system of impersonal positions (official statuses) - official and professional, supported by a system of legally established norms that create the basis for the legitimacy of the power of a specific official. At the same time, the power of the norm limits the power and arbitrariness of the leader and makes it possible to ensure a level of social order without the intervention of the leader.

Consequently, we can name two interrelated, but fundamentally different sources of regulation of human behavior: human power and the power of social norms. At the same time, the power of the social norm opposes the power of the individual and limits his arbitrariness in relation to others.

The main criterion for structuring social organizations is the degree of formalization of the relations existing in them. Taking this into account, a distinction is made between formal and informal organizations.

Formal organization – it is the basic subsystem of the organization. Sometimes the term “formal organization” is used as a synonym for the concept of organization. The term “formal organization” was introduced by E. Mayo. Formal organization is an artificially and rigidly structured impersonal system for regulating business interactions, focused on achieving overall organizational goals, enshrined in regulatory documents.

Formal organizations build social relations based on the regulation of connections, statuses, and norms. These include, for example, industrial enterprises, firms, universities, municipal authorities (city hall). The basis of formal organization is the division of labor, its specialization according to functional characteristics. The more developed the specialization, the more versatile and complex the administrative functions, the more multifaceted the structure of the organization. The formal organization resembles a pyramid in which tasks are differentiated at several levels. In addition to the horizontal distribution of labor, it is characterized by coordination, leadership (hierarchy of service positions) and various vertical specializations. The formal organization is rational, it is characterized exclusively by service connections between individuals.

Formalization of relations means narrowing the range of choice, limiting, even subordinating the will of the participant to an impersonal order. Following the established order means: the initial restriction of freedom and activity of each participant in the activity; establishing certain rules governing interaction and creating a field for their standardization. As a result of following a clear order, the concept of “bureaucracy” arises.

M. Weber considered organization as a system of power and developed theoretical basis its management. In his opinion, the requirements of a specialized and multifaceted organization are best met by a bureaucratic system. The advantages of bureaucracy are most noticeable when it manages to eliminate personal, irrational, and emotional elements during the performance of official duties. According to this, bureaucracy is characterized by: rationality, reliability, and efficiency. Efficiency, neutrality, hierarchy, legality of actions, centralization of power. Main disadvantage bureaucracy - lack of flexibility, stereotyped actions.

However, as practice shows, it is impossible to build the activities of organizations entirely on the principles of formalizing relations, since:

Firstly, the actual activities of the bureaucracy are not so idyllic and give rise to a number of dysfunctions.

Secondly, the activities of the organization presuppose not only strict order, but also the creative activity of the employee.

Thirdly, there are many restrictions on the total formalization of relations:

· the entire sphere of human interactions cannot be reduced to business ones;

· formalization of business relations is possible only if the methods of activity and tasks are repeated;

There are a lot of problems in the organization that require innovative solutions;

· a high level of formalization of relations is possible only in an organization in which the situation is relatively stable and defined, which makes it possible to clearly distribute, regulate and standardize the responsibilities of employees;

· to establish and legally formalize norms, it is necessary that these norms be observed in the informal sphere

There are different classifications of formal organizations: by form of ownership; the type of goal being achieved and the nature of the activity being performed; the ability of employees to influence organizational goals; scope and scope of organizational control; type and degree of hardness organizational structures and the degree of formalization of relations; the degree of centralization of decision-making and the rigidity of organizational control; the type of technology used; size; number of functions performed; type external environment and the way to interact with it. By for various reasons organizations classified into societal and local; scalar (rigidly structured) and latent (less rigidly structured); administrative and public; business and charitable; private, joint stock, cooperative, state, public, etc. Despite significant differences, they all have a number of common features and can be considered as an object of study.

Often service relationships do not fit into purely formal connections and norms. To solve a number of problems, workers sometimes have to enter into relationships with each other that are not provided for by any rules. Which is completely natural, because... the formal structure cannot provide for the full complexity of the relationship.

Informal organizations is an alternative, but no less effective subsystem social regulation behavior that spontaneously arises and operates in an organization at the level of small groups. This type of behavior regulation is focused on the implementation of common goals and interests small group(often inconsistent with the overall goals of the organization) and maintaining social order in the group.

Informal organizations appear not by order or decision of the administration, but spontaneously or deliberately to solve social needs. An informal organization is a spontaneously formed system of social connections and interactions. They have their own norms of interpersonal and intergroup communication that differ from formal structures. They arise and operate where formal organizations do not perform any functions important to society. Informal organizations, groups, associations compensate for the shortcomings of formal structures. As a rule, these are self-organized systems created to realize the common interests of the subjects of the organization. A member of an informal organization is more independent in achieving individual and group goals, has greater freedom in choosing a form of behavior and interaction with other individuals in the organization. These interactions in to a greater extent depend on personal attachments and sympathies.

Informal organizations operate according to unwritten rules; their activities are not strictly regulated by orders, management guidelines, or regulations. Relations between participants in informal organizations are based on oral agreements. Solving organizational, technical and other problems is most often distinguished by creativity and originality. But in such organizations or groups there is no strict discipline, so they are less stable, more flexible and subject to change. The structure and relationships largely depend on the current situation.

Emerging in the process of activity, an informal organization can act both in the sphere of business and non-business relations.

The relationship between formal and informal organizations is complex and dialectical.

It is obvious that the discrepancy between goals and their functions often provokes conflicts between them. On the other hand, these subsystems of social regulation complement each other. If a formal organization, objectively focused on achieving corporate goals, often provokes conflicts between participants in joint activities, then an informal organization relieves these tensions and strengthens integration social community, without which the organization’s activities are impossible. In addition, according to C. Barnadra, the connection between these regulatory systems is obvious: firstly, the formal organization arises from the informal, i.e. patterns of behavior and norms created in the process informal interactions, are the basis for constructing a formal structure; secondly, the informal organization is a testing ground for testing created samples, in the absence of which the legal consolidation of social norms in the formal regulatory subsystem leads to their invalidity; thirdly, a formal organization, filling only part of the organizational space, inevitably gives rise to an informal organization. The informal organization has a significant influence on the formal one, and seeks to change the existing relations in it according to its needs.

Thus, each type of organization has its own advantages and disadvantages. A modern manager, lawyer, entrepreneur must have this meaty understanding in order to skillfully use practical work their strengths.

conclusions

Modern society cannot exist without complex social connections and interactions. Historically they have expanded and deepened. A special role is played by interactions and connections that provide the most important needs of the individual, social groups, and society as a whole. As a rule, these interactions and connections are institutionalized (legalized, protected from the influence of accidents), and are of a stable, self-renewing nature. Social institutions and organizations in the system of social connections and interactions are a kind of pillars on which society rests. They ensure the relative stability of social relations within society.

Determining the role of social institutions in social change and development can be reduced to two interrelated actions:

Firstly, they ensure a transition to a qualitatively new state of the social system and its progressive development.

Secondly, they can contribute to the destruction or disorganization of the social system.

Literature

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2. Sociology: Study. village edited by Lavrinenko V.N. – 2nd bridle, reworked and additional. – M.: UNITY, 2000.

3. Sociology / Edited by V.G. Gorodyanenko. – K., 2002.

4. General sociology: Textbook. allowance / Ed. A.G. Efendieva. M., 2002.

5. Kharcheva V. Fundamentals of sociology: a textbook for students. – M.: Logos, 2001.

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Related information.

At its core, society consists of social institutions - a complex set of various characteristics that ensure the integrity of the social system. From a sociological point of view, this is a historically established form of human activity. The main examples of social institutions are school, state, family, church, and army. And today in the article we will analyze in detail the question of what social institutions are, what are their functions, types, and also give examples.

Terminological issue

In the narrowest sense, a social institution means an organized system of connections and norms that satisfy the basic needs of society in general and the individual in particular. For example, the social institution of the family is responsible for reproductive function.

If we go deeper into the terminology, a social institution is a value-normative set of attitudes and a body or organizations that approve them and help implement them. This term can also denote social elements that provide stable forms of organization and regulation of life. These are, for example, social institutions of law, education, state, religion, etc. The main goal of such institutions is to promote the stable development of society. Therefore, the main functions are considered to be:

• Meeting the demands of society.
• Control of social processes.

A little history

Ensuring functionality

In order for a social institution to perform its functions, it must have three categories of means:

• Right. Within a certain institution, it is necessary to establish its own norms, rules, and laws. This feature of a social institution, in the example of education, is manifested in the compulsory acquisition of knowledge by children. That is, according to the laws of the Institute of Education, parents must send their children to schools from a certain age without fail.
• Material conditions. That is, in order for children to have a place to study, they need schools, kindergartens, institutes, etc. It is necessary to have the means that will help implement the laws.
• Moral component. Public approval plays a big role in compliance with laws. After finishing school, children go to courses or institutes; they continue to study because they understand why education is needed.

Main features

Based on the foregoing, it is already possible to determine the main features of a social institution using the example of education:

1. Historicity. Social institutions arise historically when society has a certain need. People had a thirst for knowledge long before they began to live in the first ancient civilizations. Exploring the world around them helped them survive. Later, people began to pass on experience to their children, who made their discoveries and passed them on to their offspring. This is how education came into being.
2. Sustainability. Institutions may die out, but before that they exist for centuries, or even entire epochs. The first people learned to make weapons from stone, today we can learn to fly into space.
3. Functionality. Each institution performs an important social function.
4. Material resources. The presence of material objects is necessary for the functions for which the institution was created to be performed. For example, an educational institute requires educational institutions, books and other materials so that children can learn.

Structure

Institutions were created to satisfy human needs, and they are quite diverse. If we give examples of social institutions, we can say that the need for protection is provided by the institute of defense, the institute of religion (in particular, the church) manages spiritual needs, and the institute of education responds to the need for knowledge. Summarizing all of the above, we can determine the structure of the institute, that is, its main components:

1. Groups and organizations that satisfy the needs of an individual or social group.
2. Norms, values, rules, laws, following which an individual or social group can satisfy their needs.
3. Symbols that regulate relationships in economic sphere activities (brands, flags, etc.) You can even give an example of a social institution with a very memorable green symbol of a snake wrapped around a cup. It is often seen in hospitals that provide an individual or group with the need for wellness.
4. Ideological foundations.
5. Social variables, that is, public opinion.

Signs

It is important to determine the characteristics of a social institution. This can best be illustrated using education as an example:

1. The presence of institutions and groups united by one goal. For example, a school offers knowledge, children want to receive this knowledge.
2. Availability of a system of sample norms of values ​​and symbols. You can also draw an analogy with an educational institution, where a book can be a symbol, values ​​can be acquiring knowledge, and norms can be compliance with school rules.
3. Conduct in accordance with these standards. For example, a student refuses to follow the rules and is expelled from school or from a social institution. Of course, he can take the right path and go to another educational institution, or it may happen that he will not be accepted into any of them, and he will find himself left out of society.
4. Human and material resources, which will help in solving certain problems.
5. Public approval.

Examples of social institutions in society

Institutions are completely different in their manifestations and factors. In fact, they can be divided into large and low-level. If we talk about the Institute of Education, this is a large cooperation. As for its sublevels, these can be institutes of primary, secondary and high schools. Because society is dynamic, some lower-level institutions may disappear, such as slavery, and some may appear, such as advertising.

Today in society there are five main institutions:

• Family.
• State.
• Education.
• Economy.
• Religion.

General Features

Institutions are designed to satisfy the most important needs of society and protect the interests of individuals. These can be both vital and social needs. According to social research, institutions perform common and distinct functions. General functions are assigned to each object, while individual functions may vary depending on the specifics of the institution. Studying examples of the functions of social institutions, we note that the general ones look like this:

• Establishment and reproduction of relationships in society. Each institution is obliged to designate the standard behavior of the individual by introducing rules, laws and norms.
• Regulation. Relations in society need to be regulated by developing acceptable models of behavior and imposing sanctions for violating norms.
• Integration. The activities of each social institution should unite individuals into groups so that they feel mutual responsibility and dependence on each other.
• Socialization. The main purpose of this function is to transmit social experience, norms, roles and values.

As regards additional functions, they should be considered in the context of the main institutions.

Family

It is considered to be the most important institution of the state. It is in the family that people receive the first basic knowledge about the external, social world and the rules that are established there. The family is the basic unit of society, which is characterized by voluntary marriage, maintaining a common household, and the desire to raise children. In accordance with this definition, the main functions of the social institution of the family are identified. For example, economic function (general life, housekeeping), reproductive (childbirth), recreational (health-improving), social control (raising children and transferring values).

State

The institution of the state is also called a political institution, which governs society and acts as a guarantor of its security. The state must perform such functions as:

• Economic regulation.
• Supporting stability and order in society.
• Ensuring social harmony.
• Protection of the rights and freedoms of citizens, education of citizens and formation of values.

By the way, in case of war, the state must perform external functions, such as border defense. In addition, take an active part in international cooperation in order to protect the interests of the country, decide global problems and establish profitable contacts for economic development.

Education

The social institution of education is considered as a system of norms and connections that unites social values ​​and satisfies its needs. This system ensures the development of society through the transfer of knowledge and skills. The main functions of the educational institute include:

• Adaptive. The transfer of knowledge will help you prepare for life and find a job.
• Professional. Naturally, to find a job, you need to have some kind of profession, education system will help in this matter too.
• Civil. Together with professional qualities and skills, knowledge can convey mentality, that is, they prepare a citizen of a particular country.
• Cultural. The individual is instilled with the values ​​accepted in society.
• Humanistic. Helps to unlock personal potential.

Among all institutions, education plays the second most important role. An individual receives his first life experience in the family where he was born, but when he reaches a certain age, the sphere of education has a great influence on the socialization of the individual. The influence of a social institution, for example, can manifest itself in the choice of a hobby that no one in the family not only does, but also does not know about its existence.

Economy

An economic social institution must be responsible for the material sphere interpersonal relationships. A society characterized by poverty and financial instability cannot support optimal population reproduction or provide an educational basis for the development of the social system. Therefore, no matter how you look at it, all institutions are related to the economy. For example, an economic social institution ceases to function properly. The country's poverty rate begins to rise and more unemployed people appear. Fewer children will be born, and the nation will begin to age. Therefore, the main functions of this institute are:

• Coordinate the interests of producers and consumers.
• Satisfy the needs of participants in the social process.
• Strengthen connections within the economic system, and cooperate with other social institutions.
• Maintain economic order.

Religion

The institution of religion maintains the belief system that most people adhere to. This is a unique system of beliefs and practices, popular in a particular society, and focused on something sacred, impossible, supernatural. According to the research of Emile Durkheim, religion has three most important functions - integrative, that is, beliefs help unite people together.

In second place is the normative function. Individuals who adhere to certain beliefs act in accordance with canons or commandments. This helps maintain order in society. The third function is communicative; during rituals, individuals have the opportunity to communicate with each other or with the minister. This helps you integrate into society faster.

Thus, there is reason to make a small conclusion: social institutions are special organizations that must satisfy the basic needs of society and protect the interests of individuals, which will make it possible to integrate the population, but if one of the institutions fails, the country with a 99% probability can coups, rallies, armed uprisings will begin, which will ultimately lead to anarchy.