As mechanisms of social cooperation, institutions are manifest in both objectively real, formal organizations, such as the U.S. Congress, the Roman Catholic Church or the Bank of England, and, also, in informal social order and organization, reflecting human psychology, culture, habits and customs. Most important institutions, considered abstractly, have both objective and subjective aspects: examples include money and marriage. The institution of money encompasses many formal organizations, including banks and government treasury departments and stock exchanges, which may be termed, "institutions," as well as subjective experiences, which guide people in their pursuit of personal economic well-being and wealth. Powerful institutions are able to imbue a paper currency with certain value, and to induce millions into cooperative production and trade in pursuit of economic ends abstractly denominated in that currency's units. The subjective experience of money is so pervasive and persuasive that economists talk of the "money illusion" and try to disabuse their students of it, in preparation for learning economic analysis.
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Colleges and Universities :: Education
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Science Institutions & Research Organizations

Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy (ISERP) at Columbia University - Columbia University, NY,USA. Information on centers, projects, seed grants, workshops, events, and research fellows at the Institute.
Meta Description: [ The Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy draws on the intellectual community of Columbia University to pioneer interdisciplinary social science research and shape public policy. ]
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IRIC: Institute for Research on Intercultural Cooperation - Research institute co-founded in 1980 by Geert Hofstede, located at Tilburg University since 1998, performing research on the basic dimensions of national cultures and the consequences for management and policy issues.
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Ivo Pilar Institute of Social Sciences - Information about the institute, governance, activities and emloyees. Zagreb, Croatia.
Max Planck Institute for Human Development - A multidisciplinary research institute dedicated to the study of processes of human development and education and their evolutionary, social, historical, and institutional contexts. Features news, publications and staff profiles.
Meta Description: [ Max-Planck-Institut für Bildungsforschung ]
Scottish Centre for Research on Social Justice - The Scottish Centre for Research on Social Justice [SCRSJ] is based jointly at the University of Glasgow's Urban Studies Department and the Arkleton Centre for Rural Development Research at the University of Aberdeen. The SCRSJ seeks to integrate research and develop new research capacity in the field of social justice.
Meta Description: [ The Scottish Centre for Research on Social Justice (SCRSJ) is based jointly at the Department of Urban Studies, University of Glasgow and the Arkleton Centre for Rural Development Research, University of Aberdeen. The SCRSJ seeks to integrate research and develop new research capacity in the fie... ]
Stanford IIS Initiative on Distance Learning - Program created by the Institute for International Studies, Stanford University to promote the development of social science in post-Communist countries.
The Bauu Institute - Specialises in social science research, publishing, and other needs; offering services in research, database design and maintenance, graphic design, GIS mapping, and other areas for the social science, American Indian, and business communities.
Meta Description: [ The homepage of the Bauu Institute which is currently involved in anthropological, archaeological, consultative research on various topics concerning art, anthropology, archaeology, impact assessments, natural resources, deep cultural ecology theory, and other topics. ]
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