Total institution

A total institution or residential institution is a place of work and residence where a great number of similarly situated people, cut off from the wider community for a considerable time, together lead an enclosed, formally administered round of life.^{: 44 : 855} Privacy is limited in total institutions, as all aspects of life including sleep, play, and work, are conducted in the same place. The concept is mostly associated with the work of sociologist Erving Goffman.