Bases of Social Power

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Identifying sources of power. Explanation of Bases of Social Power of French and Raven.


  

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Processes of power are pervasive, complex, and often disguised in our society. The Bases of Social Power of French and Raven is a theory that  identifies five (six) bases or sources of social (organizational) power:

  1. Reward power. This form is based on the perceived ability to give positive consequences or remove negative ones.

  2. Coercive power. This is the perceived ability to punish those who not conform with your ideas or demands.

  3. Legitimate power (organizational authority). This form is based on the perception that someone has the right to prescribe behavior due to election or appointment to a position of responsibility. Also called Normative Power. Compare: Organization Chart.

  4. Referent power. This is power through association with others who possess power.

  5. Expert power. This type is based on having distinctive knowledge, expertness, ability or skills.

  6. Similar to 5: Information power. This form is based on controlling the information needed by others in order to reach an important goal.

The Five Bases of Social Power theory starts from the assumption that power and influence involve relations between at least two agents. The theory argues that the reaction of the receiving agent is the more useful focus for explaining the phenomena of social influence and power.

 

French and Raven examined the effect of power derived from the various bases of attraction and resistance to the use of power. Attraction and resistance are the recipient's sentiment towards the agent that uses power. They conclude that the use of power from the various bases has different consequences.

For example, coercive power typically decreases attraction and causes high resistance. Whereas reward power increases attraction and creates minimal levels of resistance.

 

French and Raven also concluded that "the more legitimate the coercion [is perceived to be], the less it will produce resistance and decreased attention".

 

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Recent User Comments
Lloyd - USA Desire to Have Power... "Why do people desire social power?"    0
zubair - Pakistan Power Control Model "I need comments on the power / authority that controls organizations and specifically about the Power Control Model."    1
Aka Firowz Ahmad - Bangladesh 2 more Types of Power "There are two other types of power. One is derived from dependency relationship. Any dependency for anything else makes one powerful over the dependents. This may be called "Dependency Power". The other power may be termed as "Synergistic Power" which develops out of a close and committed interactive relationship among a group of people who are dedicated to any common goal(s)."    4
Tom Milus - USA Referent Power "The definition for “referent power” above seems to attribute power to the follower by virtue of his or her attachment to a powerful person. French and Raven's definition, however, focuses on the leader having power by virtue of the follower wanting to emulate the leader. It may well be that the follower hopes to gain personal power through the association with a powerful leader, but that is just one of the possibilities for the follower's attraction to the leader. Great teachers, successful political leaders, certain military leaders, movie stars, rock stars etc all have some amount of referent power. They have this power because the followers essentially want to be like them, have what they have, or hope for some other sense of personal satisfaction as a result of the relationship. Consequently, the follower adopts thinking and behavior styles etc in an attempt to be like the leader. The leader becomes a point of reference."    4
Milind Kher - India Social Power is a Reality "Just as social intelligence is a recognized intelligence, so also social power is a reality. Through social power, people are able to do many things which may not otherwise have been possible for them."    2
Best User Comments
Ken Klosterman - USA "Legitimate Power" "While I appreciate and aknowledge that the definition of legitimate power, posed in this section, represents the current social paradigm, I believe that it presents a significant divergence from the original definition and underlying intent of French and Raven's (1959) research. In their definition they specifically stated that "we note that legitimate power is very similar to the notion of legitimacy of authority which has long been explored by sociologists, .... However, legitimate power is not always a r"    16
Adrastos - Greece Framing or Meaning Power "An additional source of power in organizations can be to establish the framework within which issues will be viewed and decided (J. Pfeffer - Managing with Power: Politics and Influence in Organizations, 1992). Leaders and elites often have substantial ability to define or impose the meanings and myths which define identity, beliefs and values."    1
Jason - USA Charismatic Power "What about personal power or call it charismatic power? Certain people can be powerful through their charisma, energy, stamina, strength or verbal skills on top of the mentioned sources of power."    -1
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Bases of Social Power Education & Events


 

Compare with the 5 Bases of Social Power: Hagberg Model of Personal Power  |  Charismatic Leadership  |  Servant-Leadership  |  Change Management Iceberg  |  Appreciative Inquiry  |  Positive Deviance  |  Change Phases  |  Force Field Analysis  |  Core Group Theory  |  Planned Behavior  |  Groupthink  |  EPIC ADVISERS  |  Leadership Styles  |  Managerial Grid  |  Situational Leadership  |  Level 5 Leadership  |  Centralization and Decentralization

 

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  ● Gonca Telli Yamamoto (Turkey) Network Power "I definitely agree with you the synergistic power. We could also say "Network Power" for the new types of social networks that gives a lot of opportunities to their users.All the six powers could also included wherein."
  ●  (India) Democratic Power and Capitalistic Power "Another two types of power also can be included in the list as Democratic Power and Capitalistic Power which come by democratic and capitalistic approaches of individuals."
  ● Ken Cuccinelli (United States) People Power "I would say Network power and Synergistic power are shades of the same thing . Capitalist power only occurs in a democratic society... Therefore the author may be talking of People Power when masses are united to an end."
  ● medagama (srilanka) Will Power "While agreeing on the basic five types of sources of power, I would like to bring in another: "Will Power". To me, without this power nothing can be achieved. At first sight, one might think that it is generic. But, this is not so."
  ●  (Ukraine/Russia) Acausal Power "One more sort of power which is obscure for understanding is Acausal Power. It is conditioned by the collective unconscious and guides the people it embraces throughout their lifetimes. That's why certain patterns of power work in one society and fail in another. There is no universal power formula, it always depends on the development backgrounds of the groups. For example, democracy will never fit to the Ukrainian of Russian society, and exercising it will result into a coercive power exercising. As we are prone to stick to different norms and forms of social life we feel convenient with."
  ● Ganesh Tiwari (India) Ethical Power "Definitely, apart from all above or coherent with all above, there also exists Ethical Power and its demon UNETHICAL POWER. So its all about which power you choose to meet your goal. Ethical power may yield in long run but perpetual, well synchronized & long lasting. Or unethical power which may yield faster but ill synchronized as well as short lasting..."
  ● Aung Thura (Myanmar) Positional power to Personal power "I would say about try to change Positioning power to Personal power by effective leadership and ethical people mindset in progressive organization."



  ● Ken Klosterman (USA) continuation "... However, legitimate power is not always a role relation" (p.159). To restrict the understanding that one possesses legitimate power "due to election or appointment to a position of responsibility" in my opinion overlooks the fundamental understanding of this base that French and Raven tried to convey."

  ● Doc (USA) Referent Power "Regarding referent power - I believe the French and Raven model defines this as power held by a primary over a secondary - not power held by the secondary. My recollection of the the definition was something like... We accede to the influence efforts of another because we like them, wish to be like them, wish to curry their favor. The power is held by the primary because of personal attraction."
  ●  (India) French and Raven Model of Social Power "Both Tom and Doc (USA) are true as French and Raven speak of primary power held over secondary because of their acceptance and recognition of the former. Here the author has redefined and vested the power in people who are closed to the power. Primary has the power recognition by secondary because of their perceiving his power under one or more other bases of social power under this model. Thus this interpretation of referent needs to recognized."

  ● Sean (USA) Additional base of social power? "When I took his class at UCLA, we students discussed with Professor Raven another possible base of interpersonal influence and social power: CHARISMA. Is charisma another base of social power, or is it already represented by one or more of the above-mentioned bases of social power and interpersonal influence, such as referent, informational, expert, synergistic, or others bases? It seems to capture some of these, but does it capture something else as well, such as the ability to inspire, to have others participate in a cause/movement, to influence others to reframe their social, economic, and political realities, to inspire hope, etc.?"