The notion of instilling has to do with the action of giving or placing a type of knowledge in a person who does not have it. Inculcar is almost always used in relation to some type of educational act, both formal and informal. But sometimes it can also be understood as tipping, giving something to someone in a negative sense as when it is said "a punishment was instilled in him".
We can define the word instill as the act of placing something on a person. As said, the term is generally used to designate some type of educational act that can be formal or informal but that assumes that a person who does not have certain knowledge in advance is provided with such. In this sense, the main function of any teacher is to instill in their students the knowledge specifically selected as information that they have to possess as they grow. However, the act of instilling is something that anyone can do since a mother can also do it when she instills in her children the idea of solidarity, or a famous person when she instills in her followers a passion for a certain activity, etc. In addition, one can also speak of instilling feelings, not just knowledge, as when talking about instilling a sense of love towards one's neighbor or towards the country.
It is important to note that whenever we talk about instilling something in someone we are implicitly referring to the notion of influence. Whether in a negative or positive way, the person who instills always exercises power or influence over the one who learns or receives the information since it will be she later who repeats it and may, eventually, pass it on to another according to her point of view. This influence can be achieved in various ways, through love, respect, fear, censorship, etc.
