Experiences with Role taking and Role conflicts

Role refers to the behavioral attributes an individual is expected to follow when they occupy a social position or status.

Role taking refers to a situation when an individual places himself mentally or imaginatively in the role of others to reflect upon his behavior. Humans can place themselves in the position of others and anticipate behavioral responses which leads to the development of self-consciousness. As a child, I used to play at being a doctor following my dad, who is a doctor, around in his clinic. To play a doctor, a crucial step was to anticipate what the patient would say and I was forced to place myself in their position and assess the severity of their issues and their impacts on their well-being. Thus, role-taking involves studying the perspectives of others. On teacher’s day, I got a chance to take the role of a teacher for a day and put myself in the shoes of my class teacher for a day. While trying to control the noise in the class, I realized how tough it is to play the role of a teacher and how it demands immense patience on her part. This helped me look upon my behavior and I decided to be an obedient student from that day. We’ve all played house – where I used to always play the role of a mother taking care of her child, cooking, and cleaning. It is when you take someone else’s position that you realize the difficulties they face and the amount of hard work that goes behind fulfilling the demands attached to a role. We’ve all been through a phase when we used to compare ourselves to others and believe how it was easier to live their lives. I remember how my mother always used to say not to judge until you’ve been in their place. Well, role-taking helps us analyze a situation from another’s perspective and without any bias which leads to better decision making. Even as adults we always decide upon any matter taking into consideration another’s feelings and how it will impact them. It is also known as ‘You’ behavior where we focus on the recipient’s needs. To quote a current experience, I had to take the role of Kesavananda Bharati for a college assignment. While researching for my project, I had to put myself in his position and come up with a script that would give justice to his plight and portray the atrocities he had to endure while his community was losing their land due to land reform acts under the constitutional amendment act. It gave me a chance to understand his role as a leader of the community and how it was his duty to represent his community in a court of law. Thus, role-taking employs imagination and helps an individual understand the view of others.

At the time of role-playing an individual experiences being pulled in various directions as they try to respond to the demands of every role. This conflict is known as role conflict. It can be a conflict between a perceived image of a role and the actual behavior which leads to inner conflict or turmoil. Or it can be a conflict between the many roles being played by an individual. The most common example in the modern world is the conflict between the role of a mother and the role of a working woman. It has been observed to be physically and emotionally exhausting. In school, being the class representative, I always faced a conflict between my role as a CR and my role as a friend. Should I save my friend or report his misbehavior to the teachers? Being a member of the Abhivyakti committee of IMNU, during our flagship event, I was faced with a tough choice between my role as a committee member and my role as a student. The question was ‘Should I miss my lecture and help in the décor for the event and write 8 assignments for my attendance deficiency or attend the class and leave the décor incomplete?’ As a student, we have a perceived image in our heads to study before exams, write our assignments on time, and without copying and scoring good marks. And when compared to the actual behavior of studying a night before exams, paraphrasing content from google, or scoring badly on tests we face we face an internal conflict that can be emotionally taxing. This always makes me start a new term with the motto to start studying from the beginning. Thus, we all face role conflicts that lead to group tensions and individual discomforts. These conflicts can be overcome by considering various perspectives and taking carefully planned decisions aka role-taking.