SOC 1100 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Ascribed Status, Thomas Theorem, Role Conflict

• School: University of Guelph
• Department: Sociology
• Course: SOC 1100
• Professor: Deanna Behnke- Cook

Document Summary

Social interaction: the process by which people act and react in relation to others. Status: a social status that a person holds. Status changes over the life course as people"s roles in society change. Ascribed status is a social position that someone receives at birth or assumes involuntarily later in life, matters at which people have little to no choice about. Achieved status is a social position that someone assumes voluntarily and that reflects personal ability and effort in which some choice exists. Master status is a status that has exceptional importance for social identity often shaping a person"s entire life. Role: behaviours expected of someone who holds a particular status. A person holds a status and performs a role. Robert merton introduced the concept of role set which identifies a number of roles attached to a single status. A global perspective shows that roles people use to define their lives differ from society to society.