Role Model Definition, History & Importance
Table of Contents
- What is a Role Model?
- The History of Role Models
- Qualities of a Role Model
- The Importance of Role Models
- Lesson Summary
- FAQs
- Activities
Prompts About Role Models:
Essay Prompt 1:
In approximately two paragraphs, define role model and explain how Robert K. Merton's work helped identify the concept of role models.
Example: According to Merton, people tend to copy certain sets of behavior.
Essay Prompt 2:
Write an essay of at least two paragraphs that explains how the work of Albert Bandura influenced the understanding of role models. Specifically address the social learning theory and the role of imitation.
Example: Bandura noted that humans are actively observing the behaviors of others in their environments.
Essay Prompt 3:
In approximately two to three paragraphs, write an essay that describes the importance of visibility in role models.
Example: Visibility can make role models and their behaviors more accessible to the general public.
List Prompt 1:
Make a list of at least ten examples of role models that are considered positive. These can be specific people or types of figures (i.e., athletes).
Example: Teachers.
List Prompt 2:
Make a list of at least five examples of negative types of role models. These could be groups of people or specific people.
Example: Porn stars.
Reflection Prompt:
Think about a specific role model you have had in your life. Write an essay of at least one page that describes that person and the character traits about them that caused them to become a role model for you. Also discuss the impact they have had on your life.
Example: Your soccer coach has been a role model for you because of the way he has inspired you to work hard and pursue your goals.
What does it mean to be a role model?
To be a role model means to have the ability to influence others and serve as an example in society. As a result, other people up to the role models because of their unique traits and accomplishments
What are some examples of role models?
Jeff Bezos and Oprah Winfrey are among the many who serve as role models in the world. These people are looked up to by many people because of their accomplishments over the years in their respective fields.
Table of Contents
- What is a Role Model?
- The History of Role Models
- Qualities of a Role Model
- The Importance of Role Models
- Lesson Summary
A role model refers to an individual whose achievement, behavior, or way of life is emulated by others who also aspire to be at the same level as the person. Most young people try to emulate these people because they are already established in their fields. Most role models occupy an important position in society, in addition to being recognized on a global scale. In general, role models are idolized by the community because they have achieved success or recognition beyond measure.
Role models can have positive or negative impacts on those who idolize them. On the positive side, they represent the meaning of hard work. They show that accumulating wealth is not an easy task and requires sacrifices and dedication. Also, gaining fame is not an easy task and even remaining humble is even a harder task. These are attributes that the younger people need to gain or emulate in order to be successful on the same or different path they want to follow. Most of the role models are innovators, business people, entertainers, or athletes and have taken a lot of years to craft their skills and remain at the top. Therefore, it is necessary for young people to acknowledge that it is not an easy task to be successful hence, work hard towards achieving their goals. However, on the negative side, these models are not perfect with scandals like sexual harassment affecting their images, but they manage to get away with it or clear their names. Therefore, young people should not idolize all their traits and view this to be okay.
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The term role model was derived from sociologist Robert K. Merton who used it to assess the behaviors and interactions of people in a social group. Merton was able to discover that people focus on modeling other sets of behaviors rather than focusing on their own behaviors. He asserted that people tried to copy other people's behaviors rather than focusing on improving on their own or being a better version of themselves. In most cases, people with high roles in society were emulated by the minority or those who do not have a commanding voice in society. Also, Merton identified that the "worshipped" individuals had a way of motivating people in social groups because they had something to show, such as their successes. Albert Bandura on his part discussed the theory of social learning, also termed the theory of observational learning. He postulated that human behavior is greatly impacted by social role models. These role models can either be symbolic or real models. The former incorporates things like the media while the latter includes aspects like parents. Both symbolic and real role models impact the social learning of people.
Motivational theories of modeling explain how role models can influence behaviors, motivation, and goals. Role models have the spark and the attraction that make people idolize them because of their achievements or uniqueness. These theories address how these attributes act as inspirational and represent the possibilities of achieving the unachievable. If a person has achieved what seems impossible, he or she attracts other people who want to follow the same path to greatness. It is a common behavior for humans to associate themselves with greatness and things of possibility.
Who is a Role Model?
A role model is a person who is used as a reference by the community because of their outstanding achievement, success, or influence. These people have the resilience, discipline, and authority that earn them respect among people. A parent or a caregiver is an everyday role model regardless of less or lack of material success, more so to a child. Many children idolize or look up to their parents when they are young, perhaps because they have power over them and play crucial roles in shaping their lives. Also, teachers act as role models to children. They teach different aspects that play important roles in their development and understanding of how society works.
It is difficult to be a role model if you do not have anything to show or some sort of accomplishment. Society views a person with influence or achievement as fit to inspire the younger generation. A person may be a drunkard, but they may be viewed as role models because of their achievements. As such, their accomplishments help curtail their negative traits. However, virtually everyone can be a role model as it is subject to what others see in them.
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One of the key traits of a role model is the ability to inspire. This means whatever work they do, they do it with a passion to transmit positive energy that other people admire and would like to follow suit. For instance, footballers would say they are dedicated to playing football, but how they do it and the silverware won is enough to inspire. Another quality of a role model is having a clear set of values. Young people admire people who have their own values and beliefs when trying to achieve things. For example, a person sharing how he achieved success amidst the challenges can be a great role model.
Another trait is that a role model should be selfless and accept others regardless of their situation. They try to remove various social barriers in their drive to make the world a better place.
Another trait of role models is that they are always committed to helping others. This means that they are "others-focused" rather than "self-focused". They interact and communicate with anyone, in addition to being great listeners.
Finally, role models usually showcase leadership and confidence in all their undertakings, making others admire and want to imitate them. They strive to be calm and positive despite the obstacles.
Example Role Models
There exists many role models in the contemporary society, including:
- Oprah Winfrey is among the most celebrated women icons in the world. Her talk shows have inspired many people to change their ways and become better people in society. Also, her story inspires many women; how she built her brand in the male-dominated society makes her a respectable person around the globe. She is selfless because she strives to give people the opportunity to thrive and be successful like her through her shows.
- Steve Jobs revolutionized the Apple Company and made it an established brand around the world. Although at some point he was forced out of the company, he came back and transformed the firm, saving it from its leadership and financial struggles. This is inspiring to any person who feels one's business setup is not working out or feels like quitting.
- Malala Yousafzai was a courageous Taliban woman who was shot because of her effort to demand the rights of women to be educated. She survived and gained fame for fighting social injustices. Her effort teaches women to be courageous and fight for any injustices they may be facing. She is a role model that many people across the globe look up to for inspiration.
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Role models play important roles in our society such as boosting self-esteem, educating, and change of behavior. When role models share their personal experiences, a person can relate to their experience, thus boosting self-esteem if they were on the brink of giving up. Also, sharing these experiences is a form of education to other members that they can achieve greatness by being resilient and working hard. Besides, they get to learn that the path to greatness is not easy and requires sacrifice, discipline, and dedication. Role models also help change people's behavior. For instance, the success of a role model can aspire a lazy person to change their perceptions and behaviors in order to be successful.
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A role model is an individual whose achievement, behavior, or way of life is emulated by others who also aspire to be at the same level as the person. People like Robert Merton and Albert Bandura highlighted various theories about role models. For instance, Bandura came up with the theory of social learning, also termed the theory of observational learning. Merton on the other hand postulated that role models' behaviors tend to be seen as the acceptable behavior sets by those who emulate them. Amongst the early role models for children are the parents. The children usually take up the behaviors of their parents as they try to mimic them. Role models showcase traits such as the ability to inspire, having a clear set of values, and being selfless and committed to one's goals. Some of the renowned role models include Jeff Bezos and Oprah Winfrey. However, it is important to note that virtually everyone can be a role model as people have different traits that someone can look up to.
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Video Transcript
Role Models
In a popular legend, young George Washington once chopped down a rare and valuable cherry tree for reasons which were never fully explained. When his father asked him what happened to the tree, he said, I cannot tell a lie. I chopped down the cherry tree.
This story has been handed down for many years to show that Washington was honest to a fault, and in this way he has acted as a role model for all of us. Though the concept of a role model was first given a name in the 20th century, people were familiar with the concept well beforehand.
Definition
A role model is a person other people look up to in order to help determine appropriate behaviors. Role models can be either positive or negative. Positive role models offer a range of helpful or useful behaviors. Negative role models, on the other hand, offer examples of harmful or disruptive behaviors.
Virtually anyone can be a role model, but in Western culture, publicly visible figures such as athletes, actors, musicians, and celebrities are the most common examples. Other common role models include members of the clergy, coaches, and family members. Most of these people can be considered either negative or positive role models depending on their behaviors. Figures like drug dealers and gang members can be considered almost exclusively negative because of the behaviors they display. Even famous athletes or celebrities can be poor role models when they exhibit negative behavior or negative attitudes or language toward others.
As the sample list suggests, visibility plays an important part in making someone a role model. The most visible examples, like athletes or actors, involve individuals for whom public visibility is part of the job. Since many people can observe these individuals' behaviors, it is likely people will imitate their behaviors and attitudes. While people of all ages may have role models, it is generally young people who are still developing their own identities who try so hard to emulate their role models.
Developments
As one would suspect, social scientists continue to find the concept of role models fascinating. The term role model comes from sociologist Robert K. Merton, whose work centered on social groups. Merton discovered that rather than modeling individual behaviors, people tend to model sets of behavior. These sets of behavior are demonstrated by people who occupy certain roles in society.
Behavior sets may contain contradictory ideas that do not necessarily work well together. Instances of a role model displaying one set of ideals and then being caught living according to another set of ideals are not uncommon, and all this behavior is part of the same set. This is why people are concerned about how role models live their not-so-private lives. A role model's display of antisocial behavior may be added to the set of behaviors emulated by people who admire them. Merton's work on role models emphasizes highly visible individuals' behaviors and how people who look up to them react to such behaviors.
Another social scientist whose work is relevant here is psychologist Albert Bandura, whose work on learning led to the development of the social learning theory. Bandura found that individuals tend to be active observers of their environments. During these observations, people make note of the behaviors exhibited by others and imitate them. This imitation is part of a complex process of determining both the cause and consequence of the behavior in question. While this may sound like common sense, Bandura's work was an important step in appreciating how humans actively learn from others instead of merely reacting to their environments.
Role Models in Everyday Life
Of course social scientists find role models fascinating, but they aren't the only ones. Virtually everyone has had a role model at some point in their lives. As both Merton and Bandura would point out, they are a natural part of our environment. It is generally with young people in mind that parents, teachers and other people discuss role models. There is great concern about what young people learn from those they idolize. Public role models are often scrutinized and criticized because of the behavior they display in public. Whether this criticism is right or wrong generally depends on the behavior and how it was made public. It's a gray area whether people have a right to ask such role models to change their behavior. In any event, it's often easier said than done.
Though famous people are often role models, other people like parents, pastors and teachers can model behavior for others to emulate. In many ways, family members are the first and sometimes most constant role models available to their children, which can have a long-term positive or negative effect.
Lesson Summary
A role model is a person other people look up to in order to help determine appropriate behaviors. Role models can either be positive or negative. Positive role models offer a range of helpful or useful behaviors; negative role models, on the other hand, offer examples of harmful or disruptive behaviors.
In Western culture, publicly visible figures such as athletes, actors, musicians, and celebrities are the most common examples of role models. Visibility plays an important part in making someone a role model. The most visible examples, like athletes or actors, involve individuals for whom public visibility is part of the job. Since many people can observe these individuals' behaviors, it is likely people will imitate their behaviors and attitudes. It is generally young people who are still developing their own identities who try so hard to emulate their role models.
The term 'role model' comes from sociologist Robert K. Merton. He discovered that, rather than modeling individual behaviors, people tend to model sets of behavior. Behavior sets may contain contradictory ideas that do not necessarily work well together. Instances of a role model displaying one set of ideals and then being caught living according to another set of ideals are not uncommon, and all this behavior is part of the same set.
Psychologist Albert Bandura found that individuals tend to be active observers of their environments, noting the behaviors exhibited by others and imitating them. This helps determine cause and consequence of certain behaviors. Bandura's work was an important step in appreciating how humans actively learn from others instead of merely reacting to their environments.
Though famous people are often role models, other people, like parents, pastors, and teachers, can model behavior for others to emulate. In many ways, family members are the first and sometimes most constant role models available to children.
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