However defining isn’t the only part that needs to be looked at. Another issue to address goes along in both a classroom and in symbolic interactionism, the concept of social interaction. Social interaction is used in Merton’s role theory and states how as a society we see others and our own selves.(2003) Primarily, the first concept of role theory is status. Status refers to a recognizable social position that an individual occupies. (2015) According to Conley (2015), a professor or individual who runs the classroom has a status to live up to. Such as having the responsibility for grading assignments means that that individual has the status of professor. Status is like a rank in society and defines people of who they are. In addition, let’s say for instance that we swap statuses with professor to a student. A student’s status is that they are responsible as a student to study, finish homework and succeed. There forth a person’s status is very valuable, a status is important to society, similar to the rank of a family name. Next is the second key concept which is important in order to keep that individual 's status. The second key concept of role theory is none other than role itself. Roles refer to the duties and behaviors associated with a particular status, meaning something that is expected from that …show more content…
Conley (2015) states ascribed status and achieved status is basically the concepts of what you were born with (ascribed) versus what you become (achieved). Using the classroom example, students hold an ascribed status whereas the professor has an achieved status.(2015) Thereforth the student will only get achieved status if they succeed in their academic career while a professor has to voluntarily remain approachable to his/her students. However at times one status within our status set stands out from the rest. Which is called the master status. Master statuses in accordance to Conley can be achieved or ascribed.(2015) For example the way a student interacts with others like themselves differs to how a student talks to a professor, who is a professional at the field the student may be majoring in. With that in mind, Conley (2015) refers that a master statuses key characteristic is that people tend to interact with someone on the basis of that one status alone.(2015) Which brings in the concept that if a classmate sees a student as diligent and a good note-taker, means that individual sees that classmate’s master status as one thing only, and before anything else. If for instance a professor sees a student as hard-working but another professor who has the same student sees them as lazy, both are seeing one status alone, either a hardworking