social institutions

Meaning: A social institution is a stable, organized set of norms, roles, and values built around meeting a basic need of society, such as raising children, passing on knowledge, or producing and distributing goods. Standard examples are family, education, religion, government, economy, health care, and mass media. Institutions outlast any one person and shape behavior through socialization and expectations.

On the MCAT: Passages describe a practice or policy, and questions ask which institution is involved or how a theory interprets it. Functionalism says institutions perform manifest (intended) and latent (unintended) functions that keep society stable. Conflict theory says they tend to preserve the power of dominant groups, for example when unequal school funding passes class advantage to the next generation. Symbolic interactionism focuses on the meanings people create within institutional roles, such as doctor and patient.

Common confusion: An institution is not a specific organization or building. A particular school is an organization; education is the institution. Likewise, the family as an institution means the pattern of norms about kinship, not one household.