Social Status and

Roles

Presenters:
Kshitiz Chaudhary
Abhishek Acharya
Aashish Karki
Bigyan Gautam
 Status
Status is the place in a particular system,
which a certain individual occupies at a
particular time.
-Ralph Linton

A status is simply a position in a society or

in a group. It is set in the structure of the
group or of the society before a given
individual comes along to occupy it .
-Robert Bierstedt
 Nature of Status
External symbols to identify the status. Eg: army,
nurses, doctor, police, priest etc. wear different
dresses.
Every status has its own rights, duties and
obligations. Eg; Employee and employer.
Social statuses are governed by norms. Eg: Be honest,
be truthful.
One individual may have several statuses.Eg: Bigyan
is student, brother, son, boyfriend etc.
 Statuses exercise and influence upon the careers of
individuals. Eg: Raute will probably not become a
computer programmer.
Statuses differ with their degree of importance. Eg:
Caste status, occupational status, age, sex, political
status etc.
Statuses add to social order and social stability. Eg:
Farmers, teachers etc.
Social status has a hierarchical distribution also. Eg:
Inheritance, private property etc.
 Ascribed Status

Assigned according to standards that are beyond our

control
Based on inherited traits or are assigned based on
reaching a certain age
NOT based on abilities, accomplishments or efforts
EXAMPLE: teenager, tharu, female, jhapali
 Achieved Status

Acquired through effort or competition

Based on special skills, knowledge or ability
Based on standards that YOU control
Eg: college graduate, parent, spouse, doctor
 Role

A role is the function of a status.

-Young and Mack

A social role is the expected behavior associated with a

social position".
-Duncen Mitchell
 Nature of Role
Every individual member of society is bound to play
social roles.
Some social roles are shared by a great many people.
Eg: Adults, citizens, teachers etc.
Some social roles are enacted by one or
comparatively few individuals at a particular time in a
particular place. Eg; Governors
Some social roles may be voluntary. Eg: Social work.
Certain roles are largely involuntary. Eg: Male,
Brahmin etc.
 Interrelationship between Roles and
statuses
The terms role and status are interrelated.
Role is a relational term. Eg: Husband-Wife, Doctor-
Patient etc.
Both status and role are dynamic and constantly
changing. Eg: A mother plays the role of nurse when
a member of family is ill although nurse is a status in
hospital but in home it may be a role.
Different individuals play different roles in same
status. Eg: ministers.
 Role Conflict
Role conflict refers to the conflict experienced by an
individual at the time of role playing. This may be
experienced by an individual at two levels:
a. within his own body of roles
b. Between his own roles and those of other actors

Examples:
a) Eg: An example of role conflict is when a boss
has to fire an employee whom they consider to be
a good friend
b) Both factory worker and union leader etc.
Any
questions?

Thank you :)