Important Social Institutions

1. Emotional Needs

For satisfaction of needs like love, affection, hunger, fear, self-preservation, self-gratification, and fear of the supernatural.

2. Economic Needs

Satisfies the material needs of people and for satisfaction of basic necessities of food, clothing and shelter.

3. Familial Needs

Establishes the institution of marriage and family for the continuation of human species through structured means.

4. Religious Needs

Deals with man’s inherent fear of the supernatural. It deals with this fear through religious prayers and offerings.

5. Political Needs

Deals with the basic necessity of governing large groups of people through formalized means of government and laws.

(i) Institutions are important means, by which social behaviour can be regulated and controlled.

(ii) Institutions are instrumental in transmitting culture from one generation to another.

(iii) Institutions unite people and groups. They maintain unity and harmony in so­ciety by providing unified patterns of behaviour that is followed by all members despite diversities.

(iv) Institutions provide status to every individual. For instance, the status of married/unmarried, status of son/daughter or sibling, economic status and so on can come under this.

(v) Not all the functions of institutions are positive. Certain aspects of institutions have a negative impact on the functioning of society. For example, the institu­tion of religion has led to religious fundamentalism, besides reinforcing reli­gious identities, that has resulted in conflicts and communalism.

In India, the caste system, which is a part of the Hindu religion, resulted in the emergence of untouchability. Similarly, marriage has resulted in the birth of social evil of dowry. Thus, institutions also have certain negative repercussions on society.