Politics, Education, and
Religion
Chapter 10
Social Institutions
 Systems and structures--shape
activities of groups and individuals in
society.
 Politics, education, and religion are
social institutions.
Politics
 Methods and
tactics of
managing a
nation or state
 Administering
and controlling
internal and
external affairs
Government
 Formal, organized agency that:
 Exercises power and control in
modern society
 Through creation & enforcement
of laws
Power and Authority
 Power= Ability to impose one’s
will on others
 Authority= Legitimate power
Types of Political Systems
 Authoritarianism:
 System of government by and
for a small number of elites
 Does not include representation
of ordinary citizens
Types of Political Systems
(cont’d.)
 Dictatorship: One form of
an authoritarianism system
 Seizes power
 Becomes an absolutist ruler
Types of Political Systems
 Totalitarianism: Most extreme and
modern form of authoritarianism
 The government seeks to control
every aspect of citizens’ lives
Types of Political Systems
 Monarchy: Government by a king or
queen
 Succession of rulers kept within family
 Absolute monarchies: Complete
authority over their subjects
 Constitutional monarchs: Royal figures
 Powers defined by political charter
 Limited by a parliament or other
governing body
Types of Political Systems
 Democracy:
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
 C. Wright Mills:
 Coined the term power elite
A relatively small number of people
Who control:
 Economic
 Political, and
 Military institutions of a society
Influence of Money in Politics
 Special interest groups:
Organizations that raise and
spend money
 To influence elected officials or
public opinion
Special Interest Groups
 Interest group, also called special
interest group or pressure group
 Any association of individuals or
organizations
 Attempts to influence public policy in
its favor
Special Interest Groups
 Goal could be a policy that exclusively
benefits group members or one
segment of society
 e.g., government subsidies for farmers
or
 A policy that advances a broader public
purpose
 e.g., improving air quality
Top Interest Groups
 Lawyers/Law Firms
 Insurance
 Securities/Invest
 Leadership PACs
 Health Professionals  Oil & Gas
 Real Estate
 Lobbyists
 Commercial Banks
 Pharm/Health Prod
Other Influences
 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
 Influence the public
Famous Opinion Leaders
Education
 The process by which a society
transmits:
 Knowledge,
 Values, and
 Expectations to its members
 So they can function in society
Education
 Schooling serves important functions for
society:
 Transmission of knowledge
 Learning to society’s rules
 Respect authority
 Develop qualities that make people
efficient and obedient workers
Education
 Educational institutions help reproduce
inequality in society.
 The hidden curriculum:
 Unspoken and unofficial norms, behaviors,
and values that kids learn at school
 In addition to the official curriculum of
math, reading, science, and so on.
Hidden Curriculum
 Expectations about how to act in public
 Standing in line
 How to interact with non-parental
authority figures
 Patriotism
 Pledge of Allegiance each morning
 Social hierarchies
 Who it’s ok to ridicule
 What it means to get different grades
School Funding and Inequality
 Because schools are funded by
local property taxes
 Children in poor neighborhoods
are trapped in poor schools
 Which reinforces inequality
Education in Crisis
 Many believe America’s educational
system is in crisis
 Little agreement on solutions
 Some attempts:
 Early college high schools
 Homeschooling
 School vouchers
 Charter schools
Early College High Schools
 Institutions that blend high school
and college
 Students earn both a high school
diploma and
 Two years of college credit toward a
bachelor’s degree
Other Options
 Homeschooling: the education of
children by their parents, at home
 School vouchers: Payments from the
government to parents
 Whose children attend failing public
schools
 Helps parents pay private school tuition.
Other Options
 Distance learning:
 Educational course or program in which
the teacher and students do not meet
together in classroom
 Increasingly available over the internet.
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)
 Sociologists do not evaluate the truth of any
religion, but rather 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?
 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 made 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
33
 Religiosity is the regular
practice of religious beliefs,
measured by church attendance.
 Thirty-eight percent of Americans report attending
services weekly.
 Extrinsic religiosity refers to
a person’s public display of
commitment to a religious faith.
 Intrinsic religiosity refers to a person’s inner
religious life or personal relationship to the divine.
 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
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!