Power and

Political Behavior
Learning Objectives Define power, and contrast leadership and power.
Contrast the five bases of power.
Identify 9 power or influence tactics and their contingencies.
Show the connection between sexual harassment and the abuse
of power.
Distinguish between legitimate & illegitimate political behavior.
Identify the causes and consequences of political behavior.
Apply impression management techniques.
Determine whether a political action is ethical.
Show the influence of culture on the uses & perception of politics.

Concept of Power
Power - the potential/ability to influence another
person or group. Function of dependence
Influence - the process/exercise of power to
change/affect the thoughts, behavior, and feelings
of another person
Authority - the right to influence another person

Define power and contrast

leadership and power
Contrasting Leadership and Power

Leaders use power as a means of attaining group goals.

Leaders achieve goals, and power is a means of facilitating their
achievement.

Differences between Leadership and Power:

Goal compatibility
Power does not require goal compatibility, merely dependence.
The direction of influence
Leadership focuses on the downward influence on ones followers.

Concept of Power
Zone of Indifference - the range in which
attempts to influence a person will be perceived as
legitimate & will be acted on without a great deal of
thought
Zone of Indifference

Managers strive to expand

employees zone of indifference
Zone of Indifference

Bases/ Sources of Organizational Power:

Formal & Personal
Reward Power - agents ability to control the
rewards that the target wants
Coercive Power - agents ability to cause an
unpleasant experience for a target
Legitimate Power - agent and target agree that
agent has influential rights, based on position and
mutual agreement
Referent Power - based on interpersonal
attraction; charismatic
Expert Power - agent has knowledge target needs

Which Power is Most Effective?

Expert Power!
Strong relationship to performance & satisfaction
Transfers vital skills, abilities, and knowledge

within the organization

Employees internalize what they observe & learn
from managers they consider experts

Information Power
access to and control over important
information
Formal/informal position in communication
network
Interpreting information when passing it on (the
spin)
Can flow upward, downward, and laterally
Information Power -

Criteria for Using Power Ethically

Does the behavior produce a good outcome for
people both inside and outside the organization?
Does the behavior respect the rights of all parties?
Does the behavior treat all parties equitably and
fairly?

Photos courtesy of Clips Online 2008 Microsoft Corporation

Two Faces of Power

Personal Power power used for personal gain

Social Power power used to

create motivation or to accomplish
group goals

Characteristics of Successful Power Users

Have high need for social power
Approach relationships with a communal

orientation
Focus on needs and interests of others
Belief in the
authority system
Altruism
Photos courtesy of Clips Online 2008 Microsoft Corporation

Preference for
work & discipline
Belief in justice

Power Analysis: A Broader View

Organizational Power

Types of Membership

Coercive Power - influence

through threat of punishment,
Alienative Membership
fear, or intimidation
- members feel hostile, negative,
Utilitarian Power do not want to be there
influence through rewards and
Calculative
benefits
Membership - members
Normative Power weigh benefits and limitations of
influence through using
belonging
knowledge of members desire for
belonging; letting members know Moral Membership they are expected to do the right
members have positive
thing
organizational feelings; will deny
own needs

Etzionis Power Analysis

Type of Membership
Type of Power

Alienative

Calculative

Coercive
Utilitarian
Normative

SOURCE: Adapted from Amitai Etzioni, Modern Organizations (Upper Saddle River, N. J.: Prentice-Hall, 1964), 59-61.
Reprinted by permission of Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, N.J.

Moral

Kanters Symbols of Power

Ability

to intercede for someone in trouble

Ability to get placements for favored employees
Exceeding budget limitations
Procuring above-average raises for employees
Getting items on meeting agendas
Access to early information
Having top managers seek out their opinion

Photos courtesy of Clips Online 2008 Microsoft Corporation

Kanters Symbols of Powerlessness

Top Executives
Budget cuts
Punishing behaviors
Top-down communications

Staff Professionals
Resistance to change
Turf protection

Managers

First-line Supervisors

Assign external attribution Blame others

Blame environment

Overly close supervision

Inflexible adherence to rules
Do job rather than train

Key to overcoming powerlessness:

share power & delegate decision making

Kordas Power Symbols

Access- Who has

access to you?

Time

To whom do you
have access?
Furnishings
Size of desk
Rectangular
table
Locked file
cabinet

Power - there are more people who

inconvenience themselves on your behalf
than there are people on whose behalf you
would inconvenience yourself
Status - a persons relative standing in a
group based on prestige and deference

Photos courtesy of Clips Online 2008 Microsoft Corporation

Dependency: The Key to Power

The General Dependency Postulate

The greater Bs dependency on A, the greater the power A has

over B

Possession/control of scarce organizational resources that

others need makes a manager powerful

Access to optional resources (e.g., multiple suppliers) reduces

the resource holders power

Dependency increases when resources are:

Important

Scarce

Nonsubstitutable

Power Tactics
Power Tactics

Ways in which individuals translate power bases into specific

actions
Nine influence tactics:

Legitimacy
Rational persuasion*
Inspirational appeals*
Consultation*
Exchange
Personal appeals
Ingratiation
Pressure
Coalitions

* Most effective
(Pressure is the least effective)

Preferred Power Tactics by Influence Direction

Upward Influence

Downward Influence

Lateral Influence

Rational persuasion

Rational persuasion

Rational persuasion

Inspirational appeals

Consultation

Pressure

Ingratiation

Consultation

Exchange

Ingratiation

Legitimacy

Exchange

Personal appeals

Legitimacy

Coalitions
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Factors Influencing Power Tactics

Choice and effectiveness of

influence tactics are

moderated by:

Sequencing of tactics

Softer to harder tactics work best

Political skill of the user

The culture of the
organization

Culture affects users choice of

tactic

Politics: Power in Action

Political Behavior

Activities that are not required as part of ones formal role in

the organization, but that influence, or attempt to influence,
the distribution of advantages or disadvantages within the
organization

Legitimate Political Behavior

Normal everyday politics - complaining, bypassing,
obstructing
Illegitimate Political Behavior
Extreme political behavior that violates the implied rules of
the game: sabotage, whistle-blowing, and symbolic protest

The Reality of Politics

Politics is a natural result of resource scarcity

Limited resources lead to competition and political

behaviors
Judgments on quality of resource distribution differ markedly
based on the observers perception
Blaming others or fixing responsibility
Covering your rear or documenting decisions
Perfectionist or attentive to detail
Most decisions are made under ambiguous conditions
Lack of an objective standard encourages political
maneuvering of subjective reality

Causes and Consequences of Political Behavior

Factors that Influence Political Behavior

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Employee Responses to Organizational Politics

Most employees have low to modest willingness to play

politics and have the following reactions to politics:

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Defensive Behaviors
Employees who perceive politics as a threat have

defensive reactions
May be helpful in the short run, dangerous in the long
run
Types of defensive behaviors
Avoiding Action
Over-conforming, buck passing, playing dumb, stalling
Avoiding Blame
Bluffing, playing safe, justifying, scapegoating
Avoiding Change
Prevention, self-protection

Impression Management (IM)

The process by which individuals attempt to control

the impression others form of them

IM Techniques

Conformity
Excuses
Apologies
Self-Promotion
Flattery
Favors
Enhancement

Source: Based on B. R. Schlenker, Impression Management (Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole, 1980); W. L. Gardner and M. J. Martinko, Impression
Management in Organizations, Journal of Management, June 1988, p. 332; and R. B. Cialdini, Indirect Tactics of Image Management Beyond Basking,
in R. A. Giacalone and P. Rosenfeld (eds.), Impression Management in the Organization (Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1989), pp. 4571.

IM Effectiveness
Job Interview Success

IM does work and most people use it

Self-promotion techniques are important
Ingratiation is of secondary importance

Performance Evaluations

Ingratiation is positively related to ratings

Self-promotion tends to backfire

The Ethics of Behaving Politically

It is difficulty to tell ethical from unethical

politicking
Three questions help:
1.
2.
3.

What is the utility of engaging in the behavior?

Does the utility balance out any harm done by the action?
Does the action conform to standards of equity and justice?

Answers can be skewed toward either viewpoint

Summary and Managerial Implications

Increase your power by having others depend on you

more.
Expert and referent power are far more effective
than is coercion.

Greater employee motivation, performance, commitment, and

satisfaction
Personal power basis, not organizational

Effective managers accept the political nature of

organizations.
Political astuteness and IM can result in higher
evaluations, salary increases, and promotions.