Responsibility (glossary entry)

Responsibility can originate in two ways:

Universal responsibilities are strictly defined, and are applied to all according to an attribute, position, or state of being, regardless of the individual's consent or agreement.

Assumed responsibilities exist when a commitment is made by an individual, and the others in the community assume an expectation that agrees with it.

Disputes about responsibility usually involve an assumed responsibility. Here, there is a significant amount of case-specific decision, communication, and agreement that must take place in order for the commitments made by one party to agree with the expectations assumed by the other.