A social institution is an established system of norms and practices that organizes a key social activity. Family, education, economy, government, religion, and healthcare are examples. Institutions are not buildings. They are patterns of behavior that persist over time.

Institutions provide stability. They make life predictable. You know what to expect when you go to a hospital, a school, or a bank. They also resist change. Institutional inertia keeps old practices in place long after they stop working. Max Weber described institutions as iron cages that trap individuals in routines.

Major social institutions

• Family: reproduction, care, socialization
• Education: knowledge transmission, credentialing
• Economy: production, distribution, consumption
• Government: law, order, collective decisions
• Religion: meaning, ritual, community

Institutions are interdependent. Changes in the economy affect families. Changes in education affect the economy. When institutions fail, societies face crisis. When they adapt, societies thrive. But adaptation is slow and contested.