In day to day life, associations and institutions are used very commonly, sometimes these words are used inter changeably to mean one and the same. But in Sociology these words have specific meaning.
Characteristics of association:
(a) Association – A Human Group: An association is formed by people. It is basically a social group. Without people there can be no association. However all groups are not associations. Because an association is basically an organized group. An unorganized group like a crowd or a mob cannot be an association.
(b) Specific Interest or Interests: An association is not only collection of individuals. But also consists of those individuals who have more or less the same interests. According those who have political interests may join political parties and those who have sports interest may join sports association and so on.
(c) Co-operative spirit: An association is based on the cooperative spirit of its members, people work together to achieve common purpose. For example: Workers to work together on a co-operative basis in order to fulfill their objective of getting good working conditions.
(d) Organized Group: Association is not just a collection of individuals. It is an organized collections for some specific ends, organization gives stability and proper shape to an association, organization refers to the way in which the. status and roles are distributed among its members.
(e) Regulation of Relations: Every association has its own rules and regulation applicable to its members. These are called associational norms. Organization depends on this elements of regulation. Association reports to formal or informal means to regulate the relations of its members. For Example: Family through the institution of marriage controls the sexual behavior of its members, professional organization have formal norms to control members.
(f) Element of Stability: An association may be permanent or temporary, there are some long standing association like the political parties, trade union etc. some associations may be purely temporary in nature, Example: Association that are established to felicitate some great writers, scientists and religious leaders.
