What are social institutions?.
Social institutions are what a society develops to meet it's basic needs. These institutions shape our behavior and even effect how one thinks. The nine social institutions are family, religion, law, politics, economics, education, medicine, science and the military.
What holds society together theoretically?.
Two theories have been proposed as the answer to social cohesion, which is the degree to which members of a society feel united by shared values and other special bonds. Emile Durkheim believed the key was mechanical solidarity. This means people who perform similar tasks develop a shared consciousness, a sense of similarity that unites them into a common whole. .
Larger societies, in which the division of labor is more specialized, make people depend more on each other. Each person's contribution makes up the whole of a society. Durkheim called this organic solidarity. An example is a doctor and patient. A patient needs the knowledge of the doctor when they are ill. In turn, the doctor needs the patient to make a living.
The second theory of what holds society together was proposed by Ferdinand Tonnies. The terms her used are Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft. Gemeinschaft or "intimate community" describes village type society where everyone knows everyone else. Tonnies noted that the emerging society was moving away from village type lifestyle where family and friendship connections were lifelong and intimate toward Gesellschaft or "impersonal association". For example, contracts have replace handshakes and work doesn't center around friends and family.
2. What is dramaturgy?.
Erving Goffman developed dramaturgy or dramaturgical analysis. This perspective looks at everyday life in terms of the stage. He said we play roles in everyday life to communicate our idea of who we are and what impression we want to make on others. Goffman calls these efforts to manage the impression others receive of us impression management.