Institutions are the various forms in which the social life of a people finds expression. Some it will take for granted as a matter of custom; others it will adopt of its own choice; and yet others will be imposed upon it by an authority. Individuals are subject to the nation's institutions, but the institutions themselves exist, ultimately, for the sake of the society whose welfare they promote, whether the society be small as a family, or large as a state or religious community. Again, the institutions of a society will vary with time and place, and will depend, to some extent, on natural conditions such as geography and climate, but their distinguishing characteristic is that they all proceed, in the end, from the human will.