What does "role strain" refer to?

Role strain refers to the challenges and difficulties an individual faces when trying to meet the expectations and responsibilities associated with a single social role. For instance, if someone is a student, they may experience role strain when they struggle to balance academic requirements, social life, and personal commitments. This concept highlights the pressures that can arise when the demands of a specific role become overwhelming, leading to stress and potential conflict within that role.

Understanding role strain is crucial for analyzing how individuals navigate their social environments, as it underlines that even a singular role can present complexities that affect a person's well-being. Other concepts related to social roles, such as role conflict—which involves competing expectations from multiple roles—do not apply here, as role strain focuses exclusively on the tensions within one role.