Role reversal
Anyone who would like to know the difference between a man and a woman should not think and reflect on whether he is a typical man or a typical woman, but rather should allow himself to lead a fulfilling life. Only the one who does not torment himself with the question: “Am I playing my role correctly and have I achieved success?” - it is he who recognizes the deep productivity of differences between the sexes inherent in each individual person. © Erich Fromm
At all times, a man's destiny implied two basic concepts: to be a breadwinner and provide for the family, and also to serve as a protector. But at the end of the century before last, when the weaker half of humanity launched an active campaign to promote feminism, a change in gender roles occurred. Women, in the struggle for equality, have achieved that representatives of the fair sex can now be providers and protectors. In this regard, men were able to relieve themselves of some responsibility. Or try on the opposite gender role, taking responsibility for creating home comfort and raising children - something that women have been doing for centuries.
A hundred years ago, such a position would have caused bewilderment on the part of the public, because housekeeping does not fit into the framework of the concepts of male destiny. Nowadays, it is extremely difficult to surprise society with such a family model.
The evolution of the role of men in society
The role of men in the family and society has been significantly reformed and is far from the model of past centuries. In the prehistoric period, physical development was valued first of all in men, since, in fact, nothing else was required besides being a good hunter and defender of one’s territory. But with the development of humanity, the essence of a man’s destiny also changes. Further, the additions “warrior” and “conqueror”, “strategist” and “scientist” are made to the “man – hunter” model. Previously, at all times in the evolution of gender, a man stood a step higher than a woman. It was the stronger sex who occupied leadership positions and resolved issues of national importance.
Men's destiny was to conquer the fields of science and culture, politics and sports, education and medicine, which, basically, were entirely given over to strong male hands, while women had to be content with the rule of three Ks, as they say in Germany, namely: Kinder, Kuche, Kirche. Which translated means “children, kitchen, church” (and the church used to belong entirely to men).
The stronger sex developed and realized itself in conditions of thriving patriarchy. But while acquiring valuable skills and abilities in important sectors and areas of the state, the men of the previous time lost in other areas. The lack of concepts about the household, everyday life and other areas of life, reserved exclusively for women, made the representatives of the stronger sex dependent on elementary issues of the practical side of life. Which is a stark difference from the men of the modern world, in which there is practically no room left for gender divisions and stereotypes.
Features of the social role of a citizen
Mastering the social role of a citizen allows an individual to integrate into society, to assimilate the attitudes, values and norms accepted in society. Key relationships with significant objects of the social environment are formed through this role.
The main mechanism that allows an individual to learn the role of a citizen is loyalty. Loyalty has both social and individual meaning. This is the highest degree of relationship between an individual and his social group. With its help, civil culture is adequately assimilated, a positive attitude towards the state as a social structure, towards existing values, symbols, goals and objectives is formed.
Through the interaction of individuals who have mastered the role of citizen, civil society is formed. This is a complex multi-element system that creates all the necessary conditions to meet the needs and realize the interests of all its participants. It should be noted that citizens and civil society may well exist and function separately from the political function of the institution of the state. This is due to the fact that individuals, building relationships with each other, performing various types of social activities, and by combining their efforts, achieve the progressive development of civil society.
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The image of a modern man
Over time, modern society has greatly abolished the strict criteria by which the image of a modern man is determined. With the advent of such a social phenomenon as feminism, gender distributions of roles become less clear. If women can do work that was previously considered purely male, then why can’t men begin to realize themselves in “feminine” spheres? It no longer surprises anyone that a man can manage his own household or understand fashion, be able to cook wonderfully, or enjoy raising children.
Now, in order to be considered a “real man,” it is not at all necessary to serve in the army, as was believed in Soviet times, or to bring a killed mammoth to his wife every day, as our ancestors did in even more ancient times. So what is he, the image of a modern man? And what is considered a truly masculine destiny in our time?
The first in the list of qualities of a real man, of course, should be the line “Do what you promise.” This is the hallmark of courage. People will judge you by it and measure out the amount of respect with which you should be treated. © Steve Harvey
How do they think about a man now and what does he look like?
- The basic qualities that characterize male behavior have not changed much since past centuries . They still remain fortitude and strength of character, courage and responsibility, the ability to take on problems, protect your loved ones and ensure their well-being. A real man is one who knows how to make decisions and takes full responsibility for it.
- A man's purpose in modern society is no longer the ability to earn money in order to support his family , or to have excellent physical fitness in order to be ready to defend his homeland . These qualities are undoubtedly very important in the formation of personality, but you should not limit yourself to them.
- The image of a man who should be “a little more beautiful than a monkey” has long been out of date. Modern men are much more careful about their appearance. Nowadays, there is no shame in males getting a manicure, visiting barbers and choosing a stylish wardrobe. Definitely, taking care of your appearance is one of the components of the image of a modern man and a harmonious personality. After all, as A.P. Chekhov said: “Everything in a person should be beautiful: face, clothes, soul, and thoughts...”
- In modern families, the man does not always take on the role of breadwinner . Guided by sound logic and discarding all age-old stereotypes, the family is supported by the spouse who earns better money and who moves up the career ladder more successfully. Both professional and household responsibilities are now almost equally distributed between men and women. There are often marriages where the main breadwinner in the family is the woman, and the man takes on the responsibilities of the housewife. Cooking, cleaning the house and raising children are not something humiliating, unworthy occupation for a “real man”.
The image of a modern man is radically different from the male model of the past. But the qualities previously attributed to the stronger sex remained virtually unchanged. To this list of skills and abilities of a “true man,” some items have been added that complement the modern male image.
Classification of individual values
Classification of an individual's values is carried out according to various characteristics and criteria. A.M. Makarevich, for example, proposes the following classification of the values of a social subject in modern society:
- Meaningful values – involve individuals defining such concepts as “good”, “evil”, as well as good and happiness. Based on this, he sets himself specific goals to achieve the most favorable living conditions, and for some, happiness or the public good becomes the whole meaning of life;
- Universal personal values form the basis of vital, democratic values, the desire to be recognized in society, the desire to realize oneself in interpersonal communication, and in general, personal development is the most important component of a person’s life;
- Particular values – traditional, religious, cultural. They depend on what religion or culture the individual belongs to. Indeed, each cultural formation and religion is based on its own norms and rules, and for many they can become the meaning of life, displacing other values;
- Collectivist values are most often found in organizations and work teams, where the leader outlines the main goals and ways to achieve them.
Among the basic values of a person, it is worth highlighting family, freedom, self-realization, power, friends, morality, independence, employment and career, well-being, initiative and entrepreneurship, traditionalism, authority, legitimacy, will.
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The role of a man in the family
From time immemorial, a man in a family has been assigned the role of head of the family, and a woman has been assigned the role of homemaker. Almost all world theories and practices (esoteric, psychological, philosophical or religious teachings) are based on this type of family, where the husband is dominant. This marital model is still the most common. A man, as the head of a family, has certain responsibilities. Let's consider them based on the wisdom of the ancient Vedic teachings.
- Financial provision of family members with everything necessary (according to the Vedas, the ideal option is to completely free the wife from work so that she has enough time to do housework)
- Be a reliable support and protection for your loved ones
- Spiritual leadership in the family should always remain with the man
- The husband is obliged to show care and provide assistance to the older and younger generations of his family and his wife’s family
- A man is always responsible for the internal family climate and relationships between all relatives
- The husband is entirely responsible for satisfying his wife’s needs – sensual, material and spiritual.
- The father must take part in raising his children, showing his sons by his example what a real man should be.
Social roles and their types. classification
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The social role is interpreted as an expectation, type of activity, idea, stereotype, social function, set of norms, etc.
In addition, there are two main characteristics of roles (aspects):
1) role expectation
- what is expected of me
2) role playing
- what I will actually perform.
A certain consistency of role expectations with role performance serves as a guarantee of optimal social interaction.
The types of social roles are determined by the variability of social groups, types of activities and relationships in which the individual is included.
Classification of social roles according to Gerhard:
1. Status - changeable with the greatest difficulty, prescribed to us from birth.
- Man Woman
— Age roles
— The role of a citizen of his country
2. Positional - determined by the professional and qualification division of labor in society. (Physicists, chemists, journalists; Senior and junior researchers; professors, categories of actors). More defined than status ones. Status ones, in turn, overlap with positional ones.
3. Situational - performed in a particular situation. Pedestrian, buyer, etc. More degrees of freedom. The difference in their number can lead to conflict.
Brown's classification of positional roles at work:
1. Landmark.
2. Approver, emotional leader.
3. Unique roles due to the characteristics of the person. For example, a scapegoat.
T. Parsons. An approach to the problem of social roles. Characteristics of social role analysis:
1. Emotionality (the doctor and the cemetery attendant must be restrained).
2. Method of obtaining (methods are achieved (student) and prescribed).
3. Scale (ophthalmologist, salesperson or friend, parent).
4. Formalization. Formalized roles contain a specific structure of actions. Librarian and friend - behavior regarding the borrowed book.
5. Motivation. The motive is always there, but we are not always aware of it.
T. Shibutani. Classification of social roles:
1. Conventional. People agree on the rules for their implementation (teacher and student).
2. Interpersonal. Informal, individualized. How to behave with this or that person.
Depending on social relations, social and interpersonal social roles are distinguished.
Social roles are associated with social status, profession or type of activity (teacher, student, student, salesperson). In interactionist concepts, such roles are called conventional.
(convention - agreement).
These are standardized impersonal roles, built on the basis of rights and responsibilities, regardless of who plays these roles. There are socio-demographic roles
: husband, wife, daughter, son, grandson... Man and woman are also social roles (gender roles), biologically predetermined and presupposing specific modes of behavior.
Interpersonal roles are associated with interpersonal relationships that are regulated at the emotional level (leader, offended, neglected, family idol, loved one, etc.).
In life, in interpersonal relationships, each person acts in some dominant social role, a unique social role as the most typical individual image, familiar to others. Changing a habitual image is extremely difficult both for the person himself and for the perception of the people around him.
According to the degree of manifestation, active and latent roles are distinguished.
Active roles are determined by a specific social situation and are performed at a given moment in time (teacher in class).
Latent roles appear in the actual situation, although the subject is potentially the bearer of this role (teacher at home).
Each of us is the bearer of a large number of latent social roles.
According to the method of assimilation, roles are divided into:
Prescribed (determined by age, gender, nationality).
Acquired (which the subject acquires during the process of socialization).
The main characteristics of the social role were highlighted by the American sociologist T. Parsons. These include:
— scale;
- method of receipt;
— emotionality;
— formalization;
— motivation.
The scope of the role depends on the range of interpersonal relationships. The larger the range, the larger the scale (for example, the social roles of spouses have a very large scale, the seller - the buyer: interaction is carried out on a specific occasion - purchases - the scale is small).
The way a role is acquired depends on how inevitable the role is for the person.
The roles of a young man, an old man, a man, a woman are conditioned and do not require special efforts to acquire them. Other roles are achieved through the course of a person's life and as a result of deliberate efforts: student, academic, writer, etc.
Level of emotionality : each role carries within itself certain possibilities for the emotional manifestation of its subject.
There are roles that require emotional restraint and control: investigator, surgeon, etc. And vice versa, increased emotionality is required from actors.
Formalization as a descriptive characteristic of a social role is determined by the specifics of interpersonal relationships of the bearer of this role. Some roles involve the establishment of only formal relationships between people with strict regulation of rules of behavior; others, on the contrary, are only informal; still others may combine both.
(the traffic police inspector only formally addresses the violator).
Motivation depends on the needs and motives of a person. Different roles are driven by different motives. Parents, caring for the well-being of their child, are guided primarily by a feeling of love and care; the leader works for the sake of the cause, etc.
There is no doubt that the influence of social role on personality development is quite large. Personality development is facilitated by its interaction with persons playing a range of roles, as well as its participation in the largest possible role repertoire. The more social roles an individual is able to reproduce, the more adapted to life he is. Thus, the process of personality development often acts as the dynamics of mastering social roles.
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Mastering a new role can make a huge difference in changing a person. In psychotherapy, there is even a corresponding method of behavior correction - imagotherapy (imago - image). The patient is asked to enter a new image, to play a role as in a play. In this case, the responsibility function is not borne by the person himself, but by his role, which sets new patterned behavior. A person is forced to act differently based on a new role. The origins of imagotherapy are the psychodrama method of D. Moreno. He treated people for neuroses, providing them with the opportunity to play those roles that they would like, but could not fulfill in life.
12. Social expectations of personality
EXPECTATIONS - a social psychology term used to denote the expectation of something in interpersonal relationships, for example, evaluation of an individual's actions by other people
. Expectations are significantly determined by the individual characteristics of the individual, the objective activity and organizational structure of the group, group norms, and standards of a set of socio-psychological expectations, being internally accepted by the individual, they form part of his value orientations.
Interpersonal communication gives expectation a psychological meaning - expectation acts as a motive for human behavior
. Expectations play a regulatory role in a student group: on the one hand, they ensure adaptation, adaptation of the student to his fellow students, and on the other hand, public opinion, standards of behavior accepted in the student environment, through expectations appropriately project the consciousness and actions of each member of the student group, contribute to adaptation groups to individuals.
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Male purpose: the role of men in society
The long period of patriarchy in world history has not passed without a trace and its vestiges have not yet completely exhausted themselves. Therefore, in politics, business and other equally important social spheres, the main roles still remain with men.
Women are considered to be more emotional and soft creatures, while in managerial social processes, on the contrary, strength of spirit, endurance and a steady hand are required - qualities that, according to generally accepted opinion, any real man should have. Although women are not officially prohibited from taking on the roles of politicians or holding leadership positions, indirectly this still remains a male prerogative.
Conclusion
Based on the experience of past years, we can conclude that a man’s purpose has remained the same as it was - to provide and protect his family. But do not forget that all people are individual; if such a model suits one, this does not mean that it is typical for all representatives of the stronger sex. A man’s destiny, as indeed simply a human destiny, is to realize one’s abilities, one’s potential and achieve harmony, first of all, with oneself, with one’s inner self. And in what way the balance will be achieved - through building a successful career or creating a strong family - it does not matter at all whether the individual will be a famous military leader or a householder - it is up to him to decide. The main thing is to choose the path that will ultimately lead a person to happiness.
