Description
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Kc46U6-ERvrXZd...
https://docs.google.com/document/d/13f7M38LrpsZCDR...
With any socially constructed universe, whether it is related to the state, religion, or culture, tension will inevitably arise when those with a vested interest in keeping things the same come into conflict with those who desire change. As Berger and Luckmann explain, "institutions are characterized by inertia and inflexibility, persisting until they become ‘problematic’” (p. 135). But those very institutions and the greater social universes they inhabit can and do change, however slowly or swiftly, “by the concrete actions of human beings” (p. 134).
While socially constructed universes can serve as “sheltering canopies” (p. 120) for some, they can marginalize others. Try to keep in mind that these tensions tend to bring about change, often in the form of challenges to the established or traditional way of doing things. Those changes will be welcomed by some and resisted by others.
Below are three examples of institutions facing legitimacy crises. Find examples like these for your own response to the prompt:
1. An elite prep-school with an evolving curriculum: How L.A.'s Brentwood School Became a Battleground in the Culture WarsLinks to an external site.
2. A historically Black church in a gentrifying neighborhood: Gentrification in Philadelphia Neighborhoods—How Institutions Try to AdaptLinks to an external site.
3. The Supreme Court's growing legitimacy crisis: Term Limits- A Way to Tackle the Supreme Court's Crisis of LegitimacyLinks to an external site.
Response Prompt
After watching the videos and reading the articles answer the following writing prompt in 300+ words:
- Choose an institution in the United States. For example, the police, higher education, the court system, the health care system, the Mormon Church, etc.
- For your institution, give an example of each of the four layers of legitimation.
- How has this institution's legitimacy been threatened or challenged over time? By whom? What was the effect?
Explanation & Answer
Attached.
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Response Prompt
Student’s name
Institution Affiliation
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Response Prompt
The Police as a Social Institution
The United States police are an institution that dates back to long, dating back to maintaining
law and order. Both their legitimacy has been reinforced and challenged over time. We can
analyze how this institution is legitimated and how it has dealt with crises in the four layers
of legitimation.
1. Habitualization – Policing in the United States became routine through wellestablished practices of patrolling, answering to emergencies, and enforcing laws. The
presence of police officers in the community over time became expected in the daily
life of communities.
2. Objectivation– The police uniform, ba...
