A social role as defined by Talcott Parsons is:

"A socially expected pattern of behaviours, responsibilities, expectations and privileges."

Many areas of our lives are affected by how we are seen within our roles, including:

• status and reputation
• self image
• acceptance and belonging
• association and relationships
• freedom
• personal growth and development
• giving back
• material gains
• lifestyle

How do we determine if an individual is really part of their community with a valued social role?  Often times it seems people are brought to community and this is passed off as community living, that they are part of the community by virtue of being there.

Is an individual active/engaged/valued participants, or are they surface/visiting participants?  What is their role?  How do we change this?  We could switch our thinking from simply "activities", to what role our loved ones can take on.  If you take on roles, activities will follow and one valued role leads to another and so on....

Individuals may want to participate in specialized programs designed for individuals with disabilities and this is okay, however these are fairly easy to access, as there are plenty of structures and supports in place to support them.  Innovation therefore is needed to assist your loved one to their rightful "role" in the larger community.

"Taking someone to community but not assisting them to be a part of it, is NOT community living....it's community visiting....Window shopping"