Role conflict

Role conflict occurs when there are incompatible demands placed upon an employee such that compliance with both would be difficult. We experience role conflict when we find ourselves pulled in various directions as we try to respond to the many statuses we hold. Role conflict can be something that can be for either a short period of time, or a long period of time, and it can also be connected to situational experiences.

Intra-role conflict occurs when the demands are within a single domain of life, such as on the job. An example would be when two superiors ask an employee to do a task, and both cannot be accomplished at the same time. Inter-role conflict occurs across domains of life. An example of inter-role conflict would be a husband and father who is also Chief of Police. If a tornado strikes the small town he is living in, the man has to decide if he should go home and be with his family and fulfill the role of being a good husband and father or remain and fulfill the duties of a "good" Chief of Police because the whole town needs his expertise."

Conflict among the roles begins because of the human desire to reach success, and because of the pressure put on an individual by two imposing and incompatible demands competing against each other. The effects of role conflict, as found through case-studies and nationwide surveys, are related to individual personality characteristics and interpersonal relations. Individual personality characteristic conflicts can arise within personality role conflict where "aspects of an individual's personality are in conflict with other aspects of that same individual's personality." (Truett 79) Interpersonal relations can cause conflict because they are by definition "having an association between two or more people that may range from fleeting to enduring, which can cause that conflict."

Example: "People in modern, high-income countries juggle many responsibilities demanded by their various statuses and roles. As most mothers can testify both parenting and working outside the home are physically and emotionally draining. Sociologists thus recognize role conflict as conflict among the roles corresponding to two or more statuses" (Macionis 90).

The discipline of group dynamics in psychology recognizes role conflict within a group setting. Members of a group may feel that they are responsible for more than one role within this setting and that these roles may become disagreeable with each other. When the expectations of two or more roles are incompatible, role conflict exists. For example, a supervisor at a factory may feel strain due to his or her role as friend and mentor to the subordinate employees, while having to exhibit a stern and professional watchful eye over the employees.

A commonly noted role conflict is that between work and family. Researchers have noticed a declining fertility rate in developed countries. Some studies suggest that this drop may be because more women are pursuing careers and obtaining educations. The research is trying to show that women who have more trouble balancing their work life and family duties go on to have fewer additional children. While some people believe that work–family role conflict only occurs for women, a 2008 study by the Families and Work Institute showed that 49% of employed males with families experienced work–family conflict. The study also showed that work flexibility is the number one concern for employed females with families and the number two or three issue for employed men with families. Flexibility in the workplace can be a huge relief to a person struggling to balance their career and home-life. Having that control is something that could change the relationship between work and family life to better be able to manage role conflict, and if more business participated in this action there could be a possible better outcome for all. Another study was done in France where the same common conflict of work and family life roles were interfering to an extreme. This study found that not even working from home was the solution, but to be able to come in late or leave early, on a flexible schedule is what was working best to be able to handle the role conflict. Having this sort of flex schedule enables people to be able to work with their role conflicts and try to better be able to manage and cope with them. Again this study supports that if businesses do create this sort of flex schedule that this could be a definite possible solution. (Dell'Antonia 12)

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