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Content: For example, gender roles influence behavior across many different contexts; although someone may be a cashier when she is on the clock, she is a woman across all settings. Role theory examines how these roles influence a wide array of psychological outcomes, including behavior, attitudes, cognitions, and social interaction. Role Theory Background
Within social psychology, role theory has generally focused on roles as causes of (a) behaviors enacted by individuals or groups and (b) inferences about individuals or groups. One of the fundamental precepts of social psychology is that the social and physical environment exerts a profound influence on individuals’ thoughts and behavior. Role theory posits that the roles that people occupy provide contexts that shape behavior. For example, the Stanford Prison Experiment demonstrated that normal college students displayed strikingly different behaviors depending on whether they were assigned to be guards or prisoners in a simulated prison environment. Within a short time, prisoners began to show meek, submissive behaviors, whereas prison guards began to show dominant, abusive behaviors. In general, people are motivated to behave in ways that fit valued social roles. Rewards stem from alignment to valued social roles, and punishments stem from misalignment to such roles.