The reason why ascription has stayed around is that it is cheap. This is because ascription involves using a preestablished structure as a resource rather than creating a new specialized structure for the same purpose. Developing new structures is costly and will only be done if it is sufficiently productive to justify the costs involved in creating and maintaining it. It can be rational to use ascriptive characteristics in order to save time, money and effort. Problems to the system can be either internal or external.
Problems concerning the development of resources are instrumental.
Problems that involve the expenditure or application of resources are consummatory. Adaptation is external since it involves relating the system to the environment and it is instrumental since it involves the development of generalized means for pursuing a variety of goals. Ascription can be adaptive. The adaptive potential of ascription rests upon the existence in ascriptively defined groups of a range of usable talents and capacities. The capacities of members of these groups are crucial in direct proportion to the levels of skills required in performing societal roles.