The Real World

An Introduction to Sociology Third Edition

Kerry Ferris and Jill Stein

Chapter 10: The Macro-Micro Link in Social Institutions: Politics, Education, and Religion

What are Social Institutions?

Social institutions are systems and structures that shape the activities of groups and individuals in society. You cant visit a social institution it is a structure, not a place. Politics, education, and religion are examples of institutions.
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What is Politics?
Politics: the methods and tactics of managing a nation or state, as well as administering and controlling its internal and external affairs.

What is Politics? (contd)

Government: the formal, organized agency that exercises power and control in modern society, especially through the creation and enforcement of laws.

What is Politics? (contd)

Power is the ability to impose ones will on others. Authority is the non-coercive, legitimate exercise of power.

Types of Political Systems

Authoritarianism is a system of government by and for a small number of elites that does not include representation of ordinary citizens.

Types of Political Systems (contd)

A dictatorship is one form of an authoritarianism system; usually a dictator does not gain power by being elected or through succession but seizes power and becomes an absolutist ruler.

Types of Political Systems (contd)

Totalitarianism is the most extreme and modern form of authoritarianism in which the government seeks to control every aspect of citizens lives.

Types of Political Systems (contd)

A monarchy is government by a king or queen, with succession of rulers kept within the family.
Absolute monarchies typically have complete authority over their subjects Constitutional monarchs are royal figures whose powers are defined by a political charter and limited by a parliament or other governing body.

Types of Political Systems (contd)

A democracy is a political system in which all citizens have the right to participate.

Pluralist Theory vs. Power Elite

Pluralism: a system of political power where a wide variety of individuals and groups have equal access to resources and power.

Pluralist Theory vs. Power Elite (contd)

C. Wright Mills coined the term power elite a relatively small number of people who control the economic, political, and military institutions of a society.

What is Politics? (contd)

Many people worry about the influence of money in politics. Special interest groups are organizations that raise and spend money to influence elected officials and/or public opinion.

What is Politics? (contd)

In addition to special interest groups, the mass media also impacts politics. For instance, many people form their beliefs based on information from opinion leaders. Opinion leaders are high-profile people who interpret events and influence the public.

What is Education?
Education is the process by which a society transmits knowledge, values, and expectations to its members so they can function in society.

What is Education? (contd)

Schooling serves a number of important functions for society:
The transmission of knowledge Learning to follow societys rules and to respect authority Being socialized to develop other qualities that will eventually make us efficient and obedient workers

What is Education? (contd)

Educational institutions also help to reproduce the inequality seen in society. The hidden curriculum describes the values and behaviors that students learn indirectly over the course of their schooling because of the educational systems structure and teaching methods.

What is Education? (contd)

The Pygmalion Effect: the idea that teachers attitudes about their students unintentionally influences their academic performance.

What is Education? (contd)

Kozols ethnography, Savage Inequalities, contends that because schools are funded by local property taxes, children in poor neighborhoods are trapped in poor schools, which reinforces inequality.

What is Education? (contd)

Many believe that Americas educational system is in crisis, though there is little agreement on how to fix the problem. Some attempts have included:

What is Education? (contd)

Early college high schools: institutions that blend high school and college into a coherent educational program in which students earn both a high school diploma and two years of college credit toward a bachelors degree.

What is Education? (contd)

Homeschooling: involves the education of children by their parents, at home.

What is Education? (contd)

School vouchers are payments from the government to parents whose children attend failing public schools to help parents pay for private school tuition.

What is Education? (contd)

Charter schools: public schools run by private entities to give parents greater control over their childrens education.

What is Education? (contd)

Distance learning includes any educational course or program in which the teacher and students do not meet together in the classroom, a situation increasingly available over the Internet.

What is Religion?
Religion includes any institutionalized system of shared:
beliefs (propositions and ideas held on the basis of faith) rituals (practices based on those beliefs) that identify a relationship between the sacred (holy, divine, or supernatural) and the profane (ordinary, mundane, or everyday).

What is Religion? (contd)

Sociologists do not evaluate the truth of any religion, but study the ways that religions shape and are shaped by cultural institutions and the ways that religions influence and are influenced by the behaviors of individuals.

What Does Religion Do?

Religion:
shapes everyday behavior by providing morals, values, rules, and norms for its participants. gives meaning to our lives. provides the opportunity to come together with others to share in group activities and identity.

Religion and Social Change

Religion can be dysfunctional by promoting inequality with sexist, racist, or homophobic doctrines. On the other hand, religious organizations have also been agents of social justice and political change.

Religious Composition in the United States

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What is Religion? (contd)

Religiosity is the regular practice of religious beliefs, measured by church attendance. Thirty-eight percent of Americans report attending services weekly.

What is Religion? (contd)

Extrinsic religiosity refers to a persons public display of commitment to a religious faith. Intrinsic religiosity refers to a persons inner religious life or personal relationship to the divine.

What is Religion? (contd)

Two groups have dramatically increased in size in recent decades:
Fundamentalists: those who literally interpret texts and want to return to a time of greater religious purity Unchurched: those who consider themselves spiritual but not religious, and who often adopt aspects of various religious traditions

So What? Importance of Institutions

Social institutions are an important part of the structure of our society. As a sociologist, it is important to understand how institutions shape our lives, and how we can shape institutions as well!

FIGURE 10.1

TOP 20 POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEES

The Real World

An Introduction to Sociology Third Edition

Kerry Ferris and Jill Stein

Social Institutions Concept Quiz

The ability to impose ones will on others is called______. a. the government b. politics c. power d. authoritarianism

Social Institutions Concept Quiz

The placement of students into different educational programs of study such as remedial classes or college-prep classes is called ______. a. tracking b. intrinsic education c. the hidden curriculum d. simulacrum

Social Institutions Concept Quiz

The values or behaviors that students learn indirectly over the course of their schooling because of the educational systems structure and teaching methods is called ______. a. tracking b. intrinsic education c. the hidden curriculum d. simulacrum

Social Institutions Concept Quiz

Public schools run by private entities to give parents greater control over their childrens education are called ______. a. charter schools b. early college high schools c. home schools d. tracking schools

Social Institutions Concept Quiz

Attendance at a religious service is an example of _______ religiosity. a. intrinsic b. secular c. liberation d. extrinsic

Social Institutions Concept Quiz

The practice of emphasizing literal interpretation of religious texts and a return to a time of greater religious purity is called ______. a. fundamentalism b. liberation theology c. secularization d. intrinsic religiosity