The social role is a status-role concept, which is one of the most popular theories in sociology. Any person is a part of society, society and in accordance with it performs a number of functions, in connection with which, in this concept, a person is a subject. Famous American sociologists laid the foundations of the concept of personality, they were R. Minton, J. Mead and T. Parson, of course, each has individual merits for the contribution of his efforts and potential to the development of the status-role concept.
Social status and social role are the two main concepts that describe a person’s social behavior. An individual, occupying a certain place in society, is fixed by a public position and has certain rights and obligations. It is this position that determines the social status of a person. At the same time, a person has several statuses, one of which is basic or basic, that is, the basic status is a person’s profession or position.
The social role is the functions of a person that he performs within the framework of his social status in a particular social system. And given that one person has several statuses, then, accordingly, he performs several roles. The total set of social roles within the framework of a single social status is a social set. A person performs more social roles if he has a much higher status and position in society.
The social role of a person working in a security agency is fundamentally different from the role set of the President of the country, this is all clear and easy. In general, the American sociologist T. Parson systematized the concept of a social role for the first time, thanks to which five main categories were identified that made it possible to qualify individual social roles:
- The social role is what is regulated in some cases. For example, the social role of a public servant is strictly outlined, and the role of this employee as a man is very blurred and individual.
- Some roles are extremely emotional, while others require rigor and restraint.
- Social roles may differ in the way they are received. It depends on the social status that is prescribed or achieved by a person independently.
- The scope and scope of authority within one social role is clearly defined, while in others it is not even established.
- The fulfillment of the role is motivated by personal interests or for the sake of public debt.
It is important to remember that a social role is a model of behavior balanced between role expectation and a person’s character. That is, this is not an exact mechanism and scheme, as expected from a specific social role, but role-based behavior is specific depending on the individual characteristics of a person. Once again, we fix that the social role of a person is determined by a specific social status expressed by a particular profession, field of activity. For example, a teacher, musician, student, salesman, director, accountant, politician. The social role of the individual is always evaluated by society, approved or condemned. For example, the role of a criminal or a prostitute has a public censure.
