Formal common interest associations appear to have become prominent during the neolithic, but to have declined subsequently in preindustrial nations. The industrial revolution supported a new proliferation. With this, the mode of operation changed: associations came to unite on the basis of rational‐legal sanctions. Modern voluntary associations may contribute to social stability as adaptive mechanisms for traditional institutions. They may socialize and support individuals caught in the disorder of social change.
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Robert Anderson (1971) studied this question.
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