What is "institutionalism"

n. 1 Adherence to the established religion, or to established codes of conduct 2 The use of public institutions in health care and social services

Institutionalism may refer to:

• Old Institutionalism, an approach to the study of politics that focuses on formal institutions of government
• New institutionalism, a social theory that focuses on developing a sociological view of institutions, the way they interact and the effects of institutions on society
• Institutional economics, an economic school approaching economic issues from a macro sociological point of view
• New institutional economics, an economic school that analyzes social norms, organizational arrangements etc.
• Historical institutionalism, a social science method of inquiry that uses institutions as subject of study in order to find, measure and trace patterns and sequences of social, political, economic behavior and change across time and space
• Institutionalism in political parties, an approach that sees political parties as having some capacities for adaptation, but also sees them as being "prisoners of their own history as an institution"
• Institutionalism in international relations, a group of differing theories on international relations, which have in common their focus on the social and organizational orders, mechanisms and structures of the international system

Institutionalism in international relations comprises a group of differing theories on international relations (IR). Functionalist and neofunctionalist approaches, regime theory, and state cartel theory have in common their focus on the structures of the international system, but they substantially differ in the way they proceed. It also refers to the way an individual affect the society by their actions.