Theories about Roles

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Theories about Roles

• Goode, Marks, Moen

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Roles

• Time
• Commitment
• Energy
• Resources

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A theory of role strain

• William J. Goode
• Columbia University
• 1960

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Ego versus Alter

• Ego is what you are currently doing (attending
  class)
• Alter is what else you could be doing (sleeping,
  skiing, working, cleaning your house, etc.)

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Awkward Empirical Facts

• Some individuals do no accept central values of
  society.
• Individuals vary in their emotional commitment to
  both important and less important values.
• This value commitment varies by class strata.
• Accept a given value but have a commitment to
  contradictory values.
• Value commitment without conformity and visa versa

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Awkward Empirical Facts

• Social positions change behavior and value may
  change.
• Values, ideals and role obligations of every
  individual are at times in conflict.

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Axiom

• Individuals who face common role obligations can
  generally fulfill them.
• There are theoretical limits to the specific
  demands which societies can make of men (women?)

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Sources of Role Strain

• No role demand is such a spontaneous pleasure
  that conformity with it is always automatic.
• Contradictory performances required bigamous
  husband (oxymoron) allocation conflicts.
• Inconsistencies what I do to earn a living for
  my children is what takes me away from living
  life with my children.
• Various behaviors in same role teaching,
  research, service.

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Role Sets and Role Strain

• Role sets within one role there is an array of
  role relationships with different individuals.
  (Faculty other faculty, students,
  administrators, professional field).
• Role strain - In general, the individuals total
  role obligations are over demanding.
• The problem is how to make the overall role
  system manageable how to allocate energy, time,
  resources to bearable proportions.

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The reduction of role strain

• Compartmentalization
• Location and context
• Situational urgency or crisis
• Delegation
• Delegate out things that are inconsistent with
  the role.
• Example delegating housekeeping to allow more
  focus on the children

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The reduction of role strain

• Elimination of role relationships
• May be difficult due to status, job or family
• Simplification is possible however
• Some continued role interaction is necessary it
  is who you are.
• Extension
• Extend some roles to provide an excuse for not
  completing other roles.

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The reduction of role strain

• Obstacles against the indefinite expansion of
  egos role strain.
• Role strain begins to increase more rapidly with
  a large number of roles than do the corresponding
  role rewards or counterpayments from alter.
• He will eventually begin to fail at some
  obligations as he adds more relationships.

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The reduction of role strain

• Barriers against intrusion
• Set boundaries (meet by appointment only)
• Feeling that they have NO time they have time
  but dispose of it as they see fit.
• Duties more narrowly prescribed less of an
  opportunity to feel the stress or do anything
  about it.

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Implementation of roles

• Transaction or bargain
• Limited resources to be allocated among
  alternatives.
• Evaluations occur (how much do I value goods,
  performances, money) (same idea as maximizing
  utility).
• Idea that you may be paying too much for a
  certain role (paying too much to be away from
  your children, engaged in politics, etc.)

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Implementation of roles

• Setting the role price in the role bargain
• Desire to carry out the performance
• Judgment as to the reward or punishment for the
  performance
• The esteem or disesteem from peripheral social
  networks or important reference groups
• Limitations on a free role bargain
• Pressures from third parties

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Structural limits and determinants

• Strain reducing mechanisms
• Selecting a set or roles that are less onerous
• Mutually supportive roles
• Minimally conflicting roles
• Obtaining a gratifying role bargain as possible
• Limited by the greater society

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Hierarchy of evaluations

• Social position of ego
• Social position of alter
• Content of the task
• Situational urgency

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Structural limits

• Third parties
• Norms of adequacy
• Linkage or disassociation of role obligations
• Performance in one area reflects on performance
  in another area
• Law abiding police persons
• Ascriptive statuses you cannot look for a
  different mother
• Lack of profit in mutual role deviation

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Family as a role budget center

• Family members often the only persons who are
  likely to know how an individual is allocating
  his total role energies
• Formal withdrawal may be difficult
• Informal withdrawal may cause guilt
• Families can give advice from a secure center
  on how to balance other roles
• Role retreats or role escapes (I dont have to
  look or sound professional at home.)

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Role strain and the larger social structure

• Sum of role performances is what keeps society
  going.
• It may also change society
• Fail to keep it going

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Multiple roles and role strain Some notes on
human energy, time and commitment

• Stephen R. Marks
• University of Maine, Orono
• 1977

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Scarcity approach to human energy

• Freud
• People do not have enough energy to be both good
  civilization builders and good lovers.
• Civilization must block various channels through
  which energy could flow towards sexual objects.
• Prohibit homosexuality, childhood sexuality,
  enforcing monogamy.

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Scarcity approach to human energy

• Spending theory
• Supply and demand of energy
• Allocated to and then consumed in this or that
  activity
• Drain theory
• Various outlets for human energy which flow
  through various channels and eventually down
  drains.
• Radical social organizations have to worry lest
  members energy leaks out of their organization

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Scarcity approach to human energy

• Both spending and draining theories see energy as
  a scarce quantity of natural stuff that is each
  individuals personal possession.
• Energy is used up every day in the sum of total
  daily activity.
• Begin the day with an energy allowance which we
  proceed to spend in our various activities until
  we have exhausted our allocation, fall asleep and
  start anew.

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Empirical evidence

• A list of articles supporting the scarcity
  theory.
• Empirical difficulties
• Some multi-role players who do NOT appear to be
  struggling with role conflict, role strain or
  role overload.
• 35 of the women surveyed (1966) were not
  overburdened.
• 20 of the lower-lower class were not fully
  drained by their kin and peer networks.
• Energy seems abundant for some people.

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How human energy is measured

• 1971 To avoid being mystical we must regard
  the concept of energy as a physical phenomenon,
  that is capable of being measured.
• Is being mystical a bad thing? Can we measure
  energy? Behaviorism vs. other theories.
• Adenosine Triphosphate ATP which is converted
  from glucose

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How human energy is measured

• ATP
• When muscles contract they consume ATP.
• More glucose is converted to ATP either from
  glycogen reserves or from fat.
• Conversion process is facilitated by the release
  of adrenaline.
• Adrenaline release is best facilitated by muscle
  contractions and by a decrease in blood sugar.

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How human energy is measured

• ATP
• The body stimulates the production of ATP from
  glucose only through the consumption of ATP in
  activity the production is an inseparable part
  of the consumption.
• It follows that the drain and spending
  perspectives are not supported by facts of
  physiology. (Does it?)
• Providing food intake is adequate the energy
  possibilities are abundant (maybe mystical..)

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The Expansion Approach to Human Energy

• Family activities may produce more energy
• The sympathetic and supportive atmosphere gives
  you more energy
• So the role of family does not drain us it
  creates energy for use in that role or another
  role.

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Marks Thesis

• Rather than energy simply flowing out
  mechanically in demand to responses until it runs
  about individuals decide how to use the energy
  and whose demands will be honored.
• People may withhold their energy into a given
  role thereby freeing that energy for other roles.
  
• If activity results in a feeling of energy loss
  it is the stance of persons

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Marks Thesis

• Abundant energy is found for anything to which
  we are highly committed and we often feel more
  energetic after having done it.

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Three Analytical Variables

• Energy
• Time
• Commitments

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Time

• Some argue time is finite and scarce and multiple
  roles give role strain
• Time may be experienced as scarce in North
  America arbitrary cultural agreement

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Commitments

• Spontaneous enjoyment of one or more specific
  performances
• Spontaneous loyalty
• Anticipation of some reward such as wealth,
  power, prestige, sympathy, approval favorable
  self-image
• Avoidance of perceived punishment such as stigma,
  disapproval, status loss, loss of rewards

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Energy

• We need to see the outcome of time and energy as
  outcomes or products of our role bargains rather
  than assuming (like Goode) that they are already
  constituted for us as scarcities even before our
  role bargains are made.