This article is about institutions as social mechanisms. Please see Organization for formal establishments.

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Institutions are social structures and social mechanisms of social order and cooperation governing the behavior of two or more individuals. Institutions are identified with a social purpose and permanence, transcending individual human lives and intentions, and with the making and enforcing of rules governing cooperative human behavior. The term, institution, is commonly applied to customs and behavior patterns important to a society, as well as to particular formal organizations of government and public service. As structures and mechanisms of social order among humans, institutions are one of the principal objects of study in the social sciences, including sociology, political science and economics. Institutions are a central concern for law, the formal regime for political rule-making and enforcement. The creation and evolution of institutions is a primary topic for history.

Aspects of Institutions

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Although individual, formal organizations, commonly identified as "institutions," may be deliberately and intentionally created by people, the development and functioning of institutions in society in general may be regarded as an instance of emergence; that is, institutions arise, develop and function in a pattern of social self-organization, which goes beyond the conscious intentions of the individual humans involved.

As mechanisms of social cooperation, institutions are manifest in both objectively real, formal organizations, such as the U.S. Congress, the Roman Catholic Church or the Bank of England, and, also, in informal social order and organization, reflecting human psychology, culture, habits and customs. Most important institutions, considered abstractly, have both objective and subjective aspects: examples include money and marriage. The institution of money encompasses many formal organizations, including banks and government treasury departments and stock exchanges, which may be termed, "institutions," as well as subjective experiences, which guide people in their pursuit of personal economic well-being and wealth. Powerful institutions are able to imbue a paper currency with certain value, and to induce millions into cooperative production and trade in pursuit of economic ends abstractly denominated in that currency's units. The subjective experience of money is so pervasive and persuasive that economists talk of the "money illusion" and try to disabuse their students of it, in preparation for learning economic analysis.

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Reverse Mortgages (Financial Institutions and Services) - Nova Science Pub. http://tinyurl.com/yk2qkot
law_book (New Law Books) Thu, 07 Jan 2010 04:06:36 -0000
Reverse Mortgages (Financial Institutions and Services) - Nova Science Pub. http://tinyurl.com/yk2qkot
Any local institutions I should eat at in #LosAngeles?
TexanAlex (Alex Blair) Thu, 07 Jan 2010 04:02:10 -0000
Any local institutions I should eat at in #LosAngeles?
Why do we as Americans keep putting our faith in large institutions (Wall St,Government,etc.) even when these bodies continue to fail? #tcot
gatewaypatriot (Curtis) Thu, 07 Jan 2010 03:59:47 -0000
Why do we as Americans keep putting our faith in large institutions (Wall St,Government,etc.) even when these bodies continue to fail? #tcot
"Culture is for other peoples' convenience and the convenience of institutions, churches, companies, tax collection schemes, what have you"
davidjorm (David Jorm) Thu, 07 Jan 2010 03:57:07 -0000
"Culture is for other peoples' convenience and the convenience of institutions, churches, companies, tax collection schemes, what have you"
least. Reading it can send many people to mental institutions or make them into psychopaths lol. I hope nobody takes that serious since life
denebola (Joe Momma/JoseBuitch) Thu, 07 Jan 2010 03:45:51 -0000
least. Reading it can send many people to mental institutions or make them into psychopaths lol. I hope nobody takes that serious since life
Colleges unite to recruit volunteers: Three Knox County institutions of higher learning are uniting to .. http://bit.ly/4Db9pj
Galesburg (Galesburg.com) Thu, 07 Jan 2010 03:33:20 -0000
Colleges unite to recruit volunteers: Three Knox County institutions of higher learning are uniting to .. http://bit.ly/4Db9pj

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