What is the concept that refers to the conflict among roles corresponding to two or more statuses group of answer choices role conflict role strain role set role exit?

Learning Objectives

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Learning Outcomes
Think It Over

Interpret how role conflict affects an individual’s perception of him/herself and his/her place within society

Role conflict describes a conflict between or among the roles corresponding to two or more statuses fulfilled by one individual. We experience role conflict when we find ourselves pulled in various directions as we try to respond to the many statuses we hold.

The most obvious example of role conflict is work/family conflict, or the conflict one feels when pulled between familial and professional obligations. Take, for example, a mother who is also a doctor. She likely has to work long hours at the hospital and may even be on call several nights a week, taking her away from her children. Many individuals who find themselves in this position describe feeling conflicted and distressed about their situation. In other words, they experience role conflict.

The above example is presented as a personality role conflict: The woman is torn between the part of her personality that values being a mother and the part that identifies as being a doctor. For an example of interpersonal relations causing role conflict, consider an individual who is a school superintendent and a father. He might think that his wife and children expect him to spend most of his evenings with them, but he may also feel that his school board and parents’ groups expect him to spend most of his after-office hours on educational and civic activities. He is therefore unable to satisfy both of these incompatible expectations, and role conflict is the result.

Conflict among the roles begins because of the human’s desire to reach success, and because of the pressure put on an individual by two imposing, apposing and incompatible demands competing against each other. The effects of role conflict, as found through case studies and nationwide surveys, are related to individual personality characteristics and interpersonal relations. Individual personality characteristic conflicts can arise when “aspects of an individual’s personality are in conflict with other aspects of that same individual’s personality. ”

Family Taught Gender Roles

Key Points

We experience role conflict when we find ourselves pulled in various directions as we try to respond to the many statuses we hold.
The most common form of role conflict is work/family conflict, in which one needs to prioritize familial or professional obligations.
The effects of role conflict are related to individual personality characteristics and interpersonal relations.

Key Terms

work/family conflict: A conflict one faces when one must choose between family needs and work obligations.
role conflict: A conflict between or among the roles corresponding to two or more statuses in one individual.

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Role conflict happens when there are contradictions between different roles that a person takes on or plays in their everyday life. In some cases, the conflict is a result of opposing obligations which results in a conflict of interest, in others, when a person has roles that have different statuses, and it also occurs when people disagree about what the responsibilities for a particular role should be, whether in the personal or professional realms.

To truly understand role conflict, though, one must first have a solid grasp of how sociologists understand roles, generally speaking.

Sociologists use the term "role" (as do others outside of the field) to describe a set of expected behaviors and obligations a person has based on his or her position in life and relative to others. All of us have multiple roles and responsibilities in our lives, that run the gamut from son or daughter, sister or brother, mother or father, spouse or partner, to friend, and professional and community ones too.

Within sociology, role theory was developed by American sociologist Talcott Parsons through his work on social systems, along with German sociologist Ralf Dahrendorf, and by Erving Goffman, with his numerous studies and theories focused on how social life resembles theatrical performance. Role theory was a particularly prominent paradigm used to understand social behavior during the middle of the 20th century.

Roles not only lay out a blueprint to guide behavior, but they also delineate the goals to pursue, tasks to carry out, and how to perform for a particular scenario. Role theory posits that a large proportion of our outward day-to-day social behavior and interaction is defined by people carrying out their roles, just like actors do in the theater. Sociologists believe that role theory can predict behavior; if we understand the expectations for a particular role (such as father, baseball player, teacher), we can predict a large portion of the behavior of people in those roles. Roles not only guide behavior, but they also influence our beliefs as the theory holds that people will change their attitudes to be in line with their roles. Role theory also posits that changing behavior requires changing roles.

Because we all play multiple roles in our lives, all of us have or will experience one or more types of role conflict at least once. In some cases, we may take on different roles that are not compatible and conflict ensues because of this. When we have opposing obligations in different roles, it may be difficult to satisfy either responsibility in an effective way.

Role conflict can occur, for example, when a parent coaches a baseball team that includes that parent's son. The role of the parent can conflict with the role of the coach who needs to be objective when determining the positions and batting lineup, for example, along with the need to interact with all the children equally. Another role conflict can arise if the parent's career impacts the time he can commit to coaching as well as parenting.

Role conflict can happen in other ways too. When the roles have two different statuses, the result is called status strain. For example, people of color in the U.S. who have high-status professional roles often experience status strain because while they might enjoy prestige and respect in their profession, they are likely to experience the degradation and disrespect of racism in their everyday lives.

When conflicting roles both have the same status, role strain results. This happens when a person who needs to fulfill a certain role is strained because of obligations or extensive demands on energy, time or resources caused by the multiple roles. For example, consider a single parent who has to work full-time, provide child care, manage and organize the home, help kids with homework, take care of their health, and provide effective parenting. A parent's role can be tested by the need to fulfill all of these demands simultaneously and effectively.

Role conflict can also ensue when people disagree about what the expectations are for a particular role or when someone has trouble fulfilling the expectations of a role because their duties are difficult, unclear or unpleasant.

In the 21st century, many women who have professional careers experience role conflict when expectations for what it means to be a "good wife" or "good mother" — both external and internal — conflict with the goals and responsibilities she may have in her professional life. A sign that gender roles remain fairly stereotypical in today's world of heterosexual relationships, men who are professionals and fathers rarely experience this type of role conflict.

Updated by Nicki Lisa Cole, Ph.D.

Learning Outcomes

Describe how individuals present themselves and perceive themselves in a social context

Long before the Internet, sociologists were examining how individuals interact with society and how they present themselves to others and are in turn perceived. In our digital age, we can contemplate the kinds of photos posted online, how others react to those photos (“hearts,” “thumbs up,” emojis, comments, etc.), and then how we interpret those reactions. This threefold process correlates with Cooley’s 1902 concept of the looking-glass self, in which we develop our sense of self as we: 1) see how others react to us, 2) interpret that reaction (typically as positive or negative) and 3) develop a sense of self based on those interpretations.

Sociologists use the term status to describe the responsibilities and benefits that a person experiences according to their rank and role in society. Some statuses are ascribed—those you do not select, such as son, elderly person, or female. Others, called achieved statuses, are obtained by choice, such as high school dropout, self-made millionaire, or nurse. As a daughter or son, you occupy a different status than as a neighbor or employee.

As you can imagine, people employ many types of behaviors in day-to-day life. Roles are patterns of behavior that we recognize in each other, and that are representative of a person’s social status. Currently, while reading this text, you are playing the role of a student. However, you also play other roles in your life, such as “daughter,” “neighbor,” or “employee.” These various roles are each associated with a different status.

If too much is required of a single role, individuals can experience role strain. Consider the duties of a parent: cooking, cleaning, driving, problem-solving, acting as a source of moral guidance—the list goes on. Similarly, a person can experience role conflict when one or more roles are contradictory. A parent who also has a full-time career can experience role conflict on a daily basis. When there is a deadline at the office but a sick child needs to be picked up from school, which comes first? When you are working toward a promotion but your children want you to come to their school play, which do you choose? Being a college student can conflict with being an employee, being an athlete, or even being a friend. Our roles in life powerfully affect our decisions and help to shape our identities.

One person can be associated with a multitude of roles and statuses. Even a single status such as “student” has a complex role-set, or array of roles, attached to it (Merton 1957).

Figure 1. Parents often experience role strain or role conflict as they try to balance different and often urgent competing responsibilities. (Credit: Ran Zwigenberg/flickr)

Of course, it is impossible to look inside a person’s head and study what role they are playing. All we can observe is outward behavior, or role performance. Role performance is how a person expresses his or her role. Sociologist Erving Goffman presented the idea that a person is like an actor on a stage. Calling his theory dramaturgy, Goffman believed that we use impression management to present ourselves to others as we hope to be perceived. Each situation is a new scene, and individuals perform different roles depending on who is present (Goffman 1959). Think about the way you behave around your coworkers versus the way you behave around your grandparents or with a blind date. Even if you’re not consciously trying to alter your personality, your grandparents, coworkers, and date probably see different sides of you.

Watch the following video to learn more about Erving Goffmann’s concept of dramaturgical analysis and consider the various roles you play on the different “stages” of your life. What is your front-stage self and your back-stage self?

As in a play, the setting matters as well. If you have a group of friends over to your house for dinner, you are playing the role of a host. It is agreed upon that you will provide food and seating and probably be stuck with a lot of the cleanup at the end of the night. Similarly, your friends are playing the roles of guests, and they are expected to respect your property and any rules you may set forth (“Don’t leave the door open or the cat will get out.”). In any scene, there needs to be a shared reality between players. In this case, if you view yourself as a guest and others view you as a host, there are likely to be problems.

Impression management is a critical component of symbolic interactionism. For example, a judge in a courtroom has many “props” to create an impression of fairness, gravity, and control—like her robe and gavel. Those entering the courtroom are expected to adhere to the scene being set. Just imagine the “impression” that can be made by how a person dresses. This is the reason that attorneys frequently select the hairstyle and apparel for witnesses and defendants in courtroom proceedings.

Figure 2. Janus, another possible “prop”, depicted with two heads, exemplifies war and peace. (Photo courtesy of Fubar Obfusco/Wikimedia Commons)

Again, Goffman’s dramaturgical approach expands on the ideas of Charles Cooley and the looking-glass self. We imagine how we must appear to others, then react to this speculation. We put on certain clothes, prepare our hair in a particular manner, wear makeup, use cologne, and the like—all with the notion that our presentation of ourselves is going to affect how others perceive us. We expect a certain reaction, and, if lucky, we get the one we desire and feel good about it. But more than that, Cooley believed that our sense of self is based upon this idea: we imagine how we look to others, draw conclusions based upon their reactions to us, and then we develop our personal sense of self. In other words, people’s reactions to us are like a mirror in which we are reflected.

Watch this Khan Academy video to learn more about Charles Cooley’s looking-glass self.

Think It Over

Describe a situation in which you have tried to influence others’ perception of you? How does Goffman’s impression management apply to this situation?
Draw a large circle, and then “slice” the circle into pieces like a pie, labeling each piece with a role or status that you occupy. Add as many statuses, ascribed and achieved, that you have. Don’t forget things like dog owner, gardener, traveler, student, runner, employee. How many statuses do you have? In which ones are there role conflicts?

achieved status: the status a person chooses, such as a level of education or income ascribed status: the status outside of an individual’s control, such as sex or race dramaturgical approach: a technique sociologists use in which they view society through the metaphor of theatrical performance impression management: the effort to control or influence other peoples’ opinion looking-glass self: our reflection of how we think we appear to others roles: patterns of behavior that are representative of a person’s social status role-set: an array of roles attached to a particular status role conflict: a situation when one or more of an individual’s roles clash role performance: the expression of a role role strain: stress that occurs when too much is required of a single role status: the responsibilities and benefits that a person experiences according to his or her rank and role in society

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