Social Institutions and Culture
Institutions and socialisation
A social institution is an established pattern of behaviour organised around a basic need: the family, education, religion, the economy, government and health care. Socialisation is the lifelong process of learning norms, values and roles. Primary socialisation happens in the family in early childhood; secondary socialisation happens through school, peers, religion, media and the workplace. Norms are rules of behaviour; values are shared beliefs about what is good; mores are strongly held norms whose breach brings serious sanction; folkways are everyday customs.
Family and education
Family types include nuclear, extended, single-parent, blended and matrifocal households. Functions include reproduction, care, economic support, socialisation and emotional security. The school system runs from primary through secondary to tertiary and technical training, with national examinations such as the Bahamas Junior Certificate and BGCSE shaping progression.
Culture and social issues
Culture includes language, religion, music, food, dress and celebrations. Bahamian culture blends African, Lucayan, European and Loyalist elements, visible in Junkanoo, rake 'n' scrape, straw plaiting and storytelling. Religion, mainly Christianity, remains influential. Social problems examinable include crime, drug and alcohol abuse, domestic violence, teenage pregnancy, poverty and inequality, and their links to unemployment and family structure.
Worked example
Asked to identify the agent of socialisation in a scenario, ask where the learning is happening. A child learning to say please at home is experiencing primary socialisation by the family; a teenager learning workplace punctuality is experiencing secondary socialisation by the employer.
Traps
Do not confuse an agent, such as the family, with an institution, such as the family system. Culture is the way of life; society is the group of people.