Erving Goffman's Organization theory (Total institutions)

In this video I summarise the fundamentals of Goffman's thinking about organizations.

[@jacquiround1193]

Well explained thank you from Ireland 🇮🇪

[@berfoyildo5222]

perfectly put into words! thank you, this made a lot of things clearer to me :) greetings from germany!

[@Jimdunne_]

Thank you for this! never think the view counts reflect the value of your videos. It's how it empowers people that counts!

[@thinkingorganizing361]

I appreciate that!

[@karla9576]

thank you for this video, it was more than useful for my final exam studies 🙏🏻

[@thinkingorganizing361]

Happy to hear that!

[@apexbeasts850]

very informative, good stuff thank you.

[@thinkingorganizing361]

Glad it was helpful!

[@PriestBeats]

This was very helpful Thanks!

[@thinkingorganizing361]

Glad it was helpful!

[@reesfleming4247]

All in all that was a great video, and it was described very well. Good job.

[@reesfleming4247]

Im days away from being institutionalised. I wish I could add my experience to your video here it would be really insightful. The mortification of the self is never documented as an agonising physical torture and rarely ever documents the degrading humiliation occurring in the public. Fantastic video and deserves more views

[@reesfleming4247]

I am behind the looking glass, the concept as to where the working class boy is sent to an institute and placed behind a theoretic " looking glass". The working class man is then stripped down and rebuilt within an institute through symbols, as a conforming individual within the institute. He is re-released as a sociologist or professional of some descript. This is done to in a bid help him refrain from offending, in a sense that, The working class man offends to achieve the materialistic and lifestyle of the middle class which he has no mean to achieve. Therefore offends..

[@reesfleming4247]

The looking glass is very much physical and can be very much day to day hell. Imagine losing all your sexual orientation then having it re-implemented or re-imprinted back into an interaction with a male Officer thus creating a homosexual prisoner. This is done solely for the Organisations entertainment, I have witnessed prisoners in a "drone like state" Whereby they have been institutionalised very young. These prisoners are often lost in the system and are used solely for humiliating acts, no conscience, completely overwhelmed and under complete control of the system in a robotic state.

[@reesfleming4247]

"Ignorance" itself is not really beneficial for an inmate that needs to be conforming to a working regime. "Ignorance" is something that can be mortified or broken down to help the inmate gain employment. This does seem to be a rational act to the public and seems very reasonable and productive to anybody outside the institute. However, Losing ignorance can be a very dark and sinister process. Imagine the symbol of losing your ignorance being imprinted to the sound of a tap dripping... Imagine a jail officer turning on a tap in the middle of the night and all of a sudden the sound of a hundred cells around you come alive like a playwrite you cannot escape. Your imagination can think how dark and sinsiter that could go, It torments thousands of people to suicide every year.

[@SuperBlakes2]

Thanks that was interesting

[@PAULAMANN]

Thanks, you made some things clearer for me. I have lived in a total institution for 30 years since being released from what wiki describes as the worlds most researched forensic establishment. I doubt you or the vast majority of people would believe that someone who is essentially free could be subjected to some of the things i have, but i thought i would take a punt as i have been attempting to get my story heard with out much success. I would say i am involved in an ongoing experiment that is not known about but which involves the incarceration of some one who should be free. If you are at all interested or want to ask any thing please drop me a line.

[@thinkingorganizing361]

Thanks for this. I'd love to hear more about the experiment!

[@PAULAMANN]

@@thinkingorganizing361 oh yes where would you like to discuss it ?

[@theelvenpath9490]

@@PAULAMANN did he get back to you ?

[@PAULAMANN]

@@theelvenpath9490 No

[@quicktimefitness4369]

What does Goffman say are the two key features of ‘total’ institutional care

[@thinkingorganizing361]

I'm not sure he sets out two key features - from memory. He emphasises that they are cut off from wider society, that they engage in what he calls a mortification of the self, and are typically organized around inmates and staff. Not sure if that answers the question. Here's a neat little quote: ‘A total institution may be defined as a place of residence and work where a large number of like-situated individual, cut off from the wider society for an appreciable period of time, together lead an enclosed, formally administered round of life. Prisons serve as a clear example, providing we appreciate that what is prison-like about prisons is to be found in institutions whose members have broken no laws.’ (1961: 11)