Role Strain Theory and Understanding the Role of Head Clergy of Racially Diverse Churches

This article proposes that we can best understand the leadership strategies of head clergy of interracial churches when we examine the social structures wherein they are situated. This includes looking at the expectations that congregations have regarding the performance of their role (micro-level); the religious social network (i.e., religious denomination or tradition) wherein the church and head clergy are embedded (meso-level); and the American racialized social system and its impact on the role negotiation process for interracial church head clergy (macro-level). It presents role strain theory as a theoretical frame for understanding the interracial church head clergy role. It discusses the limitations of individual-level explanations for the behaviors of interracial church clergy and offers an illustration of the potential of role strain theory for understanding the interracial church head clergy role.