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- Title
CORRESPONDENCE.
- Authors
Foddy, W. H.
- Abstract
This article focuses on role differentiation. Most of the sociologists have developed some appreciation of the notion of social roles: a notion that would seem to be an exceedingly attractive one for it is used everywhere. Even while noting that different writers have used different approaches one still fees that one has grasped the core meaning of the general term. This feeling is probably unaffected by sociologist Michael Banton's claim for his book "Roles" that its main contribution is the attempt to demonstrate the merits of an alternative approach, concentrating upon the differentiation of roles. By role differentiation is meant the extent to which incumbency of one role is independent of the incumbency of other roles. It is the purpose of this article to suggest, nevertheless, that one's feeling of knowing what one means by roles ought to be affected by Banton's work which highlights some of the basic ambiguities and confusions in contemporary role theory. Differentiation properly refers to a splitting up of, or specialization of, constituent elements. It seems that he is not clear as to which he means: sex, age and race, which are given as examples of basic roles, may well be said to be role signs for differential modes of behaviour.
- Subjects
SOCIAL role; BANTON, Michael, 1926-2018; SOCIOLOGISTS; SOCIAL psychology; DIFFERENTIATION (Sociology); BEHAVIOR
- Publication
Sociology, 1968, Vol 2, Issue 2, p240
- ISSN
0038-0385
- Publication type
Article