Dr. Morrison is a very popular professor. Although students have observed him at campus functions with his wife and children and have also observed him cheering on the university football team on Saturday afternoons, his students never think of Dr. Morrison as being a father, husband, or football fan. For the students, Dr. Morrison is a professor above all else. How would sociologists explain this narrow interpretation of Dr. Morrison?

Question

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Sociologists would explain this narrow interpretation of Dr. Morrison as being due to his "master status" as a professor. Master status is a status that is so dominant in a person's life that it overrides all other statuses and shapes their experiences and interactions with others. For Dr. Morrison's students, his identity as a professor is his master status, which means that they only see him through the lens of that role and do not acknowledge his other roles as a father, husband, or football fan.

Dr Morrison Is a Very Popular Professor