Marginality, Role Conflict, and Status Inconsistency as Forms of Stressful Interaction

Many sociologists have hypothesized that persons who possess inconsistent or conflicting attributes will tend to experience stress and manifest certain psychological characteristics which are markedly different from those who possess ordinary combinations of attributes. This problem has been regarded from three theoretical perspectives, the "theories" of the marginal man, role conflict, and status inconsistency. After examining the ways in which each perspective has been employed, this paper discusses several points of convergence and specifies implicit assumptions each makes about the nature of the interaction involved. Some conclusions are offered which indicate the usefulness of a reductionist approach in the formulation of sociological theory and in the conduct of research.