ABSTRACT
Just as one may look at the ways in which individuals present and
defend desired images of self, so one may look at what have been
called "presentational strategies" employed by institutions to
create and maintain desired impressions of their ongoing activity
(Ball, 1967). I n this sense, "staging" constitutes a basic aspect of
institutional functioning. Accenting the luxury, cost, and anti-
septic medical features of an abortion clinic, for example, fosters
a conventional and legitimate rather than a deviant definition of
the situation. Such a presentational strategy "allows the clinic to
minimize problems inherent in typically anxious and fearful pa-
trons" (Ball, 1967, p. 301). And in looking at any ongoing insti-
tution, one should consider what presentational strategies are
employed with various sorts of clients and toward what ends they
are directed.
