 Make
a list of all the individuals,
institutions, and circumstances that have
power over you.
 For each item, write a brief description of
how he/she/it has power over you.
 Homework: Title
page (by Thursday)
Objective: Define and analyze
power, authority, and legitimacy.
 Difficult
 Power
to define
= the ability to
make people act in ways
they might not otherwise
choose to act.
 Expertise
• Power comes from….
the power holder’s
specific skills or
expertise
 Rewards
• Power comes from…
the power holder’s
ability to give
something of value
 Coercion
• Power comes form…. the power holder’s
ability to punish or penalize others
 Persuasion
• Power comes from… the power
holder’s ability to persuade or
influence others
 Formal
Authority
• Power comes from… the power
holder’s position and duties
within an organization
 Governments
have relied on each source
of power, often in combination
• Used for positive or negative ends
Answer the following in complete sentences:
1. Which of the sources of power does a
volunteer organization use to raise money for
a cause?
2. Which source(s) of power does a state or the
federal government use to collect taxes?
3. Explain how a teacher might use each of the
five sources of power in the classroom.
4. Suppose you wanted you community to build a
bicycle path across a city park to make I
easier for students to bike to school. Describe
three ways you could apply your knowledge
of the sources of power to try to make the bike
path a reality.
 People
with right to power are said to have
authority
 Can
you think of people that exercise power
without authority? (brainstorm at least 4)
 Leaders
whose power and authority
are accepted by the people they
govern as valid have legitimacy
2 doctrines of legitimacy
 Mandate of heaven
• Chinese ruler was the “son of heaven” and
thus had authority over “all under heaven”
 Divine
right of kings
• God-given right to rule – did not have to
answer to the people
 Europeans
began to
challenge these doctrines
 Social-contract theory: the
legitimacy of government
stems from an unwritten
contract between the ruler
and the ruled
• People agree to obey in
exchange for promise to protect
their rights
 Trade
your “chips” with each other in
whatever way you think makes sense
 Follow
these rules:
 You have 2 minutes to trade your chips
 All trades (even ones in progress) must
stop when the time is up.
Use these points to calculate the point
value of your chips:
 White = 10 points
 Blue = 25 points
 Yellow = 50 points
 Pink = 100 points
 Who
has the most points?
 That person makes a rule for the next
round – it will only apply to the next
round
 Who
has the most points?
 That person makes one rule for the next
round
 The new rule cannot end all trading and
will apply only to the next round of
trading.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
What happened to you during the
game?
What happened in the class during the
game?
What do you think this game was about?
Based on this experience, how would
you define power?
Why might power be related to a course
on American politics and government?

Assign each quotation a “truth ranking” from 1 to 5
(1 = never true, 5 = always true).
Then write a response to each of the following
questions.
 Support your answers with evidence from your own
experience and your knowledge of historic and
current events.

1.
2.
3.
Which of the quotations do you think is the most
true about power?
Which of the quotations do you think is the most
true about politics?
Which of the quotations do you think is the most
true about your own life?