The central idea in role theory is that people are socialized or conditioned to play roles in a way that helps maintain a stable society or social order. Role theory examines (1) behaviors that are characteristic of people within situations or contexts and (2) various processes that produce, explain, or predict those behaviors (Biddle, 1979).

Role theory contains five major underlying propositions (Biddle, 1979). First, some behaviors are patterned and form a role, and are characteristically performed by a person within a situation or context. Second, roles often involve social positions, or are characteristic of a set of persons in the role who share a common identity, such as the role of a teacher, doctor, or nurse. Third, roles often have expectations, meaning that people know when someone is playing a role, and so have expectations about what behaviors that person will perform when playing the role. Fourth, roles persist over time because they are often embedded in larger social systems. Fifth, people must be taught roles, or be socialized into them, and may find joy or sor....