Groups, Agency and Institutions in Society

Institutions - are agents of socialization comprised of specific individuals or groups that provide the situations in which socialization can occur

Examples:
 Home- Family
 Church- Religion
 Television-Media
 Hospital-Health/Medicine
 Government- Politics
 Market – Economy
 School-Education

Status is a position in the society which has a consequent privileges and duties while role is the behavior expected of one who occupies a particular status. Role and status may be ascribed (according to age, sex, class, race or some inherited characteristics) or achieved (through personal choice or effect).

Group is a collection of people (but not all collections of people are groups.) Sociology studies how individuals impact and shape groups; and how groups impact and shape individuals. 

Characteristics of a Group

• There is permanence beyond meetings.
• It is a means for identifying member through their statuses and roles.
• It provide means for controlling members.
• It has vision, goals or purposes.
• There is a mechanism for recruiting new members.

Primary group is composed of people who know one another intimately as individual personalities while a secondary group is composed of people with impersonal,  formal and/or  utilitarian relationship.

SOURCE: http://freebooks.uvu.edu/SOC1010/images/stories/Ch07/CH7figure3_450.jpg