One of the concepts discussed in chapter 5 is dramaturgical analysis which was coined by sociologist Erving Goffman. This analysis is based on the sociological concept of dramaturgy, which is one of my favorite sociological concepts. Dramaturgical analysis is defined by your textbook as the study of social interaction that compares everyday life to a theatrical performance.
There is a statement made by people that says “life is a stage”. This phrase captures the idea of dramaturgy excellently! Dramaturgy suggests that human beings decide who shows up on the stage of life and that it depends on who is in the audience. In other words, you become who you are based on who you are dealing with. Dramaturgy also suggests that we become actors in our own lives based on the encounters we have with others and sometimes their expectations of us dictates who we become when dealing with them.
In this week’s reading, the author defines what roles are and the different ways humans experience roles when engaging in situations.
- background assumptions (role expectation)
- social construction of reality (role performance)
- role conflict
- role strain
For this discussion, your post should address the following:
You are to define each of these 4 terms in your own words and describe a situation that you have experienced for each one of the terms presented.
In order to receive full points, your post must address all of these questions and give the examples:
- What is role expectation? Include a story about how you experienced it.
- What is role performance? Include a story about how you experienced it.
- What is role conflict? Include a story about how you experienced it.
- What is role strain? Include a story about how you experienced it.
Remember, in order to receive full points:
Your initial post must:
- be written in academic language.
- address what is being asked.
- cite a minimum of 1 source or reference. (you may refer to the textbook)
- be more than 1 paragraph.