Duties vs Responsibilities
Although Duties and Responsibilities are two words that are often considered alike when it comes to their meaning and connotations, they show some differences between them. Let us comprehend this by paying attention to the definitions of the two words. Duties are the actions that have to be completed by someone in the stipulated period of time. On the other hand, responsibilities are the burdens that are shouldered by someone. This is the main differences between duties and responsibilities. This is the main difference between a duty and responsibility.
What are Duties?
As mentioned above, Duties are the actions that have to be completed by someone in the stipulated period of time. We all have duties in the variety of social roles that we play in life. For instance as parents, employees, employers, educators, writers all have specific duties. There can be no burden in the case of the performance of duties.
The duty of a father towards a son or a daughter is not due to the burden. It is discharged with affection and love as part of an action that has to be completed in the stipulated period of time. For example, the duty of a father towards a son is that he should educate the son in a stipulated period of time. It is discharged by the father with great care and affection. Hence, a special characteristic that can be identified in duties is that it is completed with love and affection.
What are Responsibilities?
A responsibility can be viewed as a thing that is required to be completed as part of some job or a specific role. Responsibilities are the burdens that are shouldered by someone. For example, the responsibilities of an officer in a financial institution like a commercial bank are a kind of burden. He shoulders the official responsibilities and considers them as a burden. There is no element of love and affection in a responsibility.
This difference between a duty and responsibility can be understood through a simple example. Let us take the role of a teacher. The duty of a teacher is to educate the younger generation. The teacher engages in this process of educating with love. This is because a duty in a job is discharged with a sense of love towards the job. The teacher discharges the job of teaching simply because of his love for teaching. There is a sense of affection in the performance of his duty. On the other hand, he does not consider the job of teaching as a burden.
The same teacher considers that the act of educating the students as his responsibility. He considers the act of educating the students as a burden placed on his shoulders. He shoulders the responsibility of educating his students. In short it is to be understood that a burden should also be dealt with care and precision.
This highlights that although most o use the two words, duties and responsibilities interchangeably, they have specific meanings and should not be confused with one another. This difference can be summarized as follows.
What is the Difference Between Duties and Responsibilities?
Definitions of Duties and Responsibilities:
Duties: Duties are the actions that have to be completed by someone in the stipulated period of time.
Responsibilities: Responsibilities are the burdens that are shouldered by someone.
Characteristics of Duties and Responsibilities:
Obligation:
Duties: In duties, one cannot notice any obligations.
Responsibilities: Responsibilities contain an obligatory nature.
Burden:
Duties: There can be no burden in the case of the performance of duties.
Responsibilities: Responsibilities are everything about a burden.
Element of love:
Duties: There is an element of love and affection in a duty.
Responsibilities: There is no element of love and affection in a responsibility.
Image Courtesy:
1. “Leighton-Duty-1883” by Edmund Leighton – Art Renewal Center Museum, image 15585.. [Public Domain] via Wikimedia Commons
2. Student Teacher in China By Rex Pe from Savannah, Georgia, USA (student teacher Uploaded by Adrignola) [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons
