Reward power is one of several things used to get people to do something you need them to do.  Of the “five ways an individual can influence others” (French and Raven 1959), reward power may be the most creative and powerful one.  The trick is using this power effectively.

It is important to consider the following, when utilizing this sort of power, in order to effectively influence someone: 

“Determine what rewards are available.  Determine what rewards are valued by followers, and
establish clear policies for the fair administration of rewards for good performance.” (Pysch 485, Summer 2013, p. 5). 

In other words, be resourceful and fair about the way you exercise your use of reward power.  Know what is realistic to use in order to intice productivity and make sure it’s something of interest to the person/people you are trying to intice.  Finally, be sure all involved understand the parameters for which these rewards are distributed when the job is done, so that there is no confusion about who gets what and why or why they were not – rewarded, when all is said and done. 

I have a somewhat amateur or recreational example from real-life to share with you, regarding reward power and how the last guidline that references establishing rules, can be important.  This example certainly won’t show up in any professional journals, but hopefully it will get my point across and perhaps even make you chuckle: 

My son and a handful of friends were at the pool the other day.  A bet ensued.  They are 12 and 13-year-olds, so prepare yourself…though I did mention this was a recreational example!  Three of the boys dared a fourth to “shake his butt” four times before jumping off the high dive.  The reward for following through with said dare?  A dollar, from each of the three, “darers”.  The “daree” proceeded to jump off the diving board without completing his dare.  Therefore, the darers did not fork over the loot.  The daree got mad and went home.  Before he did though, what transpired was a conversation between them all that could have been avoided had clear guidelines for the dare and receipt of the reward been established.  Part of the dare was jumping of the high diving board – not just the low diving board.  To the daree, that was the bigger feat! To the darers, the shaking of the daireire was the part of the bet they were willing to put money on.  Because the daree jumped off the high dive he felt he should be able to collect the bet. He also cited that the sign by the diving boards states “only one jump” while using the diving board, so he felt he was complying and that would keep him out of trouble while still being able to collect his bet. 

Simply put, if the darers had stated the following, the daree would have understood if he did not complete the “4 shakes”, he would not recieve his reward:

You must shake your daireire 5 times on the high dive, before jumping off.  If you do this, we will give you a dollar each.

To further this concept of establishing rules and clear guidlines, I think it’s important to ask the follwer if he/she understands the rules.  In this case, if the darers had asked the daree if he understood the rules, he may have said, “but the sign says, ONE JUMP!  I might get in trouble if I do more than that”, the rules may have changed and he may have been able to still do the dare and collect his reward. 

Being vague about what’s expected of a group of followers in a leadership/follower relationship, can often lead to disappointment, frustration and overall negative morale in the work place.  Reward power can be a very useful tool but knowing how to use that power, is paramount for effective leadership, as it is with any type of situational leadership.  As our commentary this week suggests, for some situations, reward power is not appropriate or effective (Psych 485, Summer, 2013, p. 5).

References:

Penn State World Campus (2013). PSYCH 485 Lesson 7: Power and Influence . Retrieved on June 4, 2013, from https://courses.worldcampus.psu.edu/su13/psych485/001/content/07_lesson/05_page.html

Reward power is one of several things used to get people to do something you need them to do.  Of the “five ways an individual can influence others” (French and Raven 1959), reward power may be the most creative and powerful one.  The trick is using this power effectively.

It is important to consider the following, when utilizing this sort of power, in order to effectively influence someone: 

“Determine what rewards are available.  Determine what rewards are valued by followers, and
establish clear policies for the fair administration of rewards for good performance.” (Pysch 485, Summer 2013, p. 5). 

In other words, be resourceful and fair about the way you exercise your use of reward power.  Know what is realistic to use in order to intice productivity and make sure it’s something of interest to the person/people you are trying to intice.  Finally, be sure all involved understand the parameters for which these rewards are distributed when the job is done, so that there is no confusion about who gets what and why or why they were not – rewarded, when all is said and done. 

I have a somewhat amateur or recreational example from real-life to share with you, regarding reward power and how the last guidline that references establishing rules, can be important.  This example certainly won’t show up in any professional journals, but hopefully it will get my point across and perhaps even make you chuckle: 

My son and a handful of friends were at the pool the other day.  A bet ensued.  They are 12 and 13-year-olds, so prepare yourself…though I did mention this was a recreational example!  Three of the boys dared a fourth to “shake his butt” four times before jumping off the high dive.  The reward for following through with said dare?  A dollar, from each of the three, “darers”.  The “daree” proceeded to jump off the diving board without completing his dare.  Therefore, the darers did not fork over the loot.  The daree got mad and went home.  Before he did though, what transpired was a conversation between them all that could have been avoided had clear guidelines for the dare and receipt of the reward been established.  Part of the dare was jumping of the high diving board – not just the low diving board.  To the daree, that was the bigger feat! To the darers, the shaking of the daireire was the part of the bet they were willing to put money on.  Because the daree jumped off the high dive he felt he should be able to collect the bet. He also cited that the sign by the diving boards states “only one jump” while using the diving board, so he felt he was complying and that would keep him out of trouble while still being able to collect his bet. 

Simply put, if the darers had stated the following, the daree would have understood if he did not complete the “4 shakes”, he would not recieve his reward:

You must shake your daireire 5 times on the high dive, before jumping off.  If you do this, we will give you a dollar each.

To further this concept of establishing rules and clear guidlines, I think it’s important to ask the follwer if he/she understands the rules.  In this case, if the darers had asked the daree if he understood the rules, he may have said, “but the sign says, ONE JUMP!  I might get in trouble if I do more than that”, the rules may have changed and he may have been able to still do the dare and collect his reward. 

Being vague about what’s expected of a group of followers in a leadership/follower relationship, can often lead to disappointment, frustration and overall negative morale in the work place.  Reward power can be a very useful tool but knowing how to use that power, is paramount for effective leadership, as it is with any type of situational leadership.  As our commentary this week suggests, for some situations, reward power is not appropriate or effective (Psych 485, Summer, 2013, p. 5).

References:

Penn State World Campus (2013). PSYCH 485 Lesson 7: Power and Influence . Retrieved on June 4, 2013, from https://courses.worldcampus.psu.edu/su13/psych485/001/content/07_lesson/05_page.html