Sick role

Topic: Community health

The sociologist Talcott Parsons' view of illness as a social role: the sick person is excused from usual duties and not blamed for being ill, but is expected to want to get well and to seek and cooperate with competent help. The model fits acute illness better than chronic illness, which people manage for life. Assess how illness changes the client's roles and others' expectations of them.

Also known as:

Parsons' sick role

In Turkish:

Hasta rolü