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70 Examples of Institutional Influence

John Spacey, updated on November 03, 2023

Institutional influence is the capacity of institutions to shape the direction of society, culture, communities, politics and economic processes. Institutions are durable and organized features of society that collectively control most resources. For example, governments, corporations and families control most wealth on a global basis. With their considerable power, status and authority institutions may seek to shape the direction of culture, politics and society. The following are common examples of institutions that exercise influence.

Academic publications	Advocacy groups
Civil servants	Corporations
Cultural institutions	Education systems
Elected officials	Families
Financial institutions	Governments
Industry organizations	Intelligence & security agencies
Inter-governmental organizations	International organizations
Justice systems	Legal systems
Lobbyists	Media organizations
Non-government organizations	Professional associations
Religions	Trade unions
Universities & colleges

Modes of Influence

The following are ways that institutions may work to exercise influence.

Advertising & sponsorships	Advocacy
Agenda setting	Astroturfing
Campaign contributions	Censorship
Cronyism	Disinformation
Documentary production	Education curriculum
Endorsements	Events
Film production	Funding media productions
Funding research	Indoctrination
Influencing advisory boards	Influencing governments
Influencing journalists	Influencing media organizations
Influencing regulatory agencies	Influencing research
Influencing social media companies	Information and data sharing
Interviews	Legal action
Lobbying	Marketing campaigns
Media messaging	Media ownership
Media regulations & control	Narrative building
Policy papers	Political networking
Press briefings	Press releases
Promoting ideologies	Propaganda
Public relations campaigns	Public service announcements
Public speaking	Regulatory capture
Revolving door employment	Social media
Storytelling	Studies
Use of education to promote ideas

Summary

The following are basic modes of institutional influence.

Overview

Institutions can have significant authority, credibility, relational capital, financial and media resources that may allow them to greatly influence society and culture.