Total institution is a sociological term, which was coined/shaped by Erving Goffman.

After Goffman the total institution is a Unterform of the more general term social institution, which it defines than "„area, dwellings, buildings or enterprises, in which regularly a certain activity is exercised "“. They can itself in principle according to criteria, as accesibility, objective and comprehensiveness to e.g. differentiate. The total institution forms an extreme case on latter scale, since it accepts "„by restrictions of social traffic with the external world "“one "„a all-comprehensive or total character "“. An institution like a football club or a laboratory takes a part of the life thus only in each case, while a passenger in a total institution, as a prison, its entire time spends there.

A total institution exhibits the following characteristics after Goffman:

1. Total institutions are all comprehensive. The life of all members takes place only in this only place and it is subjected a only one central authority.
2. The members of the institution implement its everyday work in more directly (formal) society and (more informaler) community of its fate companions.
3. All activities and other life expressions are accurately planned and their succession by explicit rules and by a staff by functionaries are prescribed.
4. The different activities and life expressions are united in a only one rational plan, which serves for it, to achieve the official goals of the institution.

Five groups of the total institutions after objectives

• to the welfare service of and harmless humans (blind, age and orphan homes)
• to the welfare service of persons, those in any way a danger for the society represent (Tuberkulosesanatorien, psychiatric hospitals)
• to the protection of the society from persons, who are regarded as dangerous; not primarily to the well-being of the seperate persons (prisons, prisoner-of-war camp, KZs)
• with work-similar goals (barracks, boardings school, ships, labour camps)
• as place of refuge or religious training centres (abbeys, monasteries)

Regardless of the different goals the central characteristic of the institutions is "„the handling of a set of human needs by the bureaucratic organization of whole groups of humans "“, from which automatically and administered a separation between managers (the personnel) (the passengers) develops. This separation is the main source of social conflicts and problems within the institution.

Literature

• Erving Goffman: Asylums. Over the social situation of psychiatric patients and other passengers. Frankfurt: Suhrkamp 1972

Articles in category "Total institution"

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• Extracts from Erving Goffman
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• Total institution - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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• total institution: Information From Answers.com
  total institution Total institution , (also referred to as voracious institutions ) as defined by Erving Goffman , is an institution where all the.