We have all heard before that power comes from “something”. That “something” can be many different sources of power that people claim you can have if you have or demonstrate that thing. Money, position, knowledge, confidence, family, clothing, and so many things are considered to be the source of one’s power. But which is actually true?
In my opinion, having power is to produce an idea of yourself into people’s minds in a manner that you want and benefit from. A person can utilize external factors to create that idea, but power is to ultimately be able to have people view you as you want them to and to act as you want them to. My reasoning for this idea of power is reinforced by the study that Bickman conducted in 1974 where a person dressed in regular clothes or a security guard uniform asked people passing by for change (PSU WC, 2016, L.7). Bickman stated that his previous research on this topic concluded that appearance could affect other people’s honesty, behavior, and political behavior (Bickman, 1974, pg. 48). The results were that more people gave change to the man wearing a uniform rather than plain clothes, likely due to the uniform bringing legitimacy to the person and thus enforcing the social power theory (Bickman, 1974, pp. 57-59).
Bickman used research from John R.P. French Jr. and Bertram Raven regarding the social power theory as part of his study. French and Raven outline the social power theory in their Bases of Social Power research as (French & Raven, 1959, pg. 263):
- Referent Power: based on a person’s identification with a person; their relationship dynamics gives a person power over the other.
- Expert Power: based on the perception that one has some special knowledge or expertness.
- Legitimate Power: the perception by a person that one has a legitimate right to prescribe behavior for them.
- Reward Power: based on a person’s perception that one has the ability to mediate rewards for them.
- Coercive Power: based on a person’s perception that one has the ability to mediate punishments for them.
We have encountered some or all of these types of social power throughout our lives. The research in the bases of social power resonated with me because I have encountered power as they describe at one point in my life. I’ve encountered referent power when I participated in the military’s mentorship program and followed my mentor’s lead. I’ve encountered reward power and legitimate power in my work environment since my bosses had the ability to mediate rewards and I also perceived them as having a legitimate right to dictate my behavior. These examples fall according to the bases of power that French and Raven described. Based on the examples of my life, I believe I gave power to the people who I believed to be powerful because I perceived them as they wanted me to. Perhaps the source of power truly lies with the followers giving into what a leader wants them to believe and acting in a manner that benefits the leader.
References:
Bickman, L (1974). The social power of a uniform. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 47-61.
French, J. & Raven, B. H. (1959). The bases of social power. In D. Cartwright (Ed.), Studies of Social Power. Ann Arbor, MI: Institute for Social Research.
Pennsylvania State University World Campus. (2016). Psych 485 Lesson 7: Power and Influence. Retrieved June 8, 2020, from https://courses.worldcampus.psu.edu/canvas/su20/2205min-5439/content/08_lesson/printlesson.html
You are right when you say Power comes from something, but what? In our lesson, it says power “is the capacity of to produce effects on others” (PSU, Lesson 7: Power and Influence, 2020, p. 1). So appearance, money, position is all true. I think more of position when it comes to power. I think everything else follows. A position that gives control over others.
I was also thinking how do leaders obtain their power? I think leaders get it from their followers. You said you were in a military mentorship program. While you were there, you probably listen to everyone who had a higher position than you. You gave them that authority because they were in a position that was higher than yours. Your mentor had control over you, whether you needed answers to certain questions, or needed a schedule on what to do.
So yes, I agree with what you wrote that we give power to others and perceive them the way they want us too.