Discuss the concept of a monitor in synchronization.

A monitor in synchronization refers to a higher-level synchronization construct used to control access to shared resources among multiple threads or processes. It ensures mutual exclusion by allowing only one thread to execute inside the monitor at a time, preventing concurrent access to shared resources. Additionally, monitors help in process synchronization by providing mechanisms like condition variables to coordinate the execution order of threads within the monitor. Monitors are vital for managing shared resources efficiently and ensuring thread safety in concurrent programming environments.