Talcott Parsons’ sick role (1951), suggests that individuals are expected to be productive members of society, an ill person cannot fulfill same duties as a healthy person, therefore society accepts this situation and this deviance from the usual is positively permitted, or approved by the community or authority figures, however for the deviance to be permitted a medical specialist must confirm that the person is ill, a process that legitimates (is proof that the person is truly sick and in need of a more lenient set of expectations). The sick role a type of deviance which can disrupt the smooth functioning of society, but because of the responsibilities involved, it’s likely to be a temporary state with the normal functioning of the individual
