Formal Authority:
Power comes from the
power holder’s position and
duties within an
organization
Expertise:
Coercion:
Power derives from the
power holder’s specific
skills or expertise
Power springs from the
power holder’s ability to
punish or penalize others
Five Sources of Power
Persuasion:
Rewards:
Power flows from the power
holder’s ability to persuade
or influence others
Power comes from the power
holder’s ability to give
something of value, such as
money responsibility or praise
Political Games People Play
Horse Trading: Winning by Giving to Get
- Essentially hard bargaining or haggling
- Each party agrees to an exchange of services to reach a
compromise
- For example a legislator might offer to support a bill she
disagrees with in exchange for the support of an opponent
on a different bill
Walkout: Winning by Refusing to Play
- The goal is to get the opposition to cooperate by taking away
something or threatening to take away something they want.
- For example a union may strike to take away a company’s ability
to do business, which then puts pressure on the company to
give the workers what they want
Power Struggle: Winning by Being Smarter
and Stronger than the Opposition
- Uses a combination of power, cunning, and secrecy to win
- Most often employed when the goals of two parties are direct
opposites
- For example a nation might threaten war with the opposition,
while secretly negotiating for peace. The threat of war may
force the opposition to agree to favorable peace terms.
Demolition Derby: Winning by Wiping
out the Opposition
- Use of force or power to completely eliminate the opposition
- May include use fear, intimidation, murders and even
massacres to remove opponents
- Can include the use of military force or more subtle threats
- North Korea, for example, routinely sends political opponents
to prison work camps, often along with their extended families
Civil Disobedience: Winning by Shaming
the Opposition
- Strategy most often used by ordinary citizens
- Players shame the opposition by protesting injustice
- Typically takes the form of peaceful protest, picketing, marches
and direct, non-violent confrontation with authorities
- Historical example include the movement for Indian
independence led by Mohandas Gandhi and the American civil
rights movement of the 1960s led by Martin Luther King, Jr.