Editing Role (section)

==Determinants and characteristics==
Roles may be [[achieved status|achieved]] or [[ascribed status|ascribed]] or they can be accidental in different situations. An ''achieved role'' is a position that a person assumes voluntarily which reflects personal skills, abilities, and effort. An ''ascribed role'' is a position assigned to individuals or groups without regard for merit but because of certain traits beyond their control,<ref>{{Harv|Stark|2007}}</ref> and is usually forced upon a person.

Roles can be semi-permanent ("[[physician|doctor]]", "mother", "child"), or they can be transitory. A well-known example is the ''[[sick role]]'' as formulated by [[Talcott Parsons]] in the late 1940s. In the transitory "sick role", a person is exempted from their usual roles, but is expected to conform to transitory behavioral standards, such as following doctors' orders and trying to recover.

For many roles, individuals must meet certain conditions, biological or sociological. For instance, a boy cannot ordinarily take the biological role of mother. Other roles require training or experience. For instance, in many cultures doctors must be educated and certified before practicing medicine.

Role development can be influenced by a number of additional factors, including [[social]], [[Genetics|genetic]] predisposition, [[cultural]] or [[situational]].
*Societal influence: The structure of society often forms individuals into certain roles based on the social situations they choose to experience. Parents enrolling their children in certain programs at a young age increases the chance that the child will follow that role.
*Genetic predisposition: People take on roles that come naturally to them. Those with athletic ability generally take on roles of athletes. Those with mental genius often take on roles devoted to education and knowledge. This does not mean that people must choose only one path, each individual can reprise multiple roles (i.e. Evelyn can be the point guard on the basketball team and the editor of her school newspaper).
*Cultural influence: Different cultures place different values on certain roles based on their lifestyle. For instance, [[Association football|soccer]] players are regarded higher in European countries than in the [[United States]], where soccer is less popular.
*Situational influence: Roles can be created or altered based on the situation a person is put in outside their own influence. An example of this is students blaming failure on situational factors like "the test wasn't fair" and this effects their role as a student.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.alleydog.com/glossary/definition.php?term=Situational+Factors+(also+Known+As+External+Factors)|title=Situational Factors (also Known As External Factors) definition {{!}} Psychology Glossary {{!}} alleydog.com|website=www.alleydog.com|access-date=2019-12-04}}</ref>

Roles are also frequently interconnected in a [[role set]], that complement of role-relationships in which persons are involved by virtue of occupying a particular social status.<ref>{{Harv|Merton|1957}}</ref> For example, a high school football player carries the roles of student, athlete, classmate, etc. Another example of a role is "an individual in the role of a parent is expected to care for their child and protect them from harm".<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://sociologydictionary.org/role/|title=Role|last=Kenton|first=Bell|date=2013|website=Sociology Dictionary}}</ref>