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Thursday, December 8, 2011

Five Bases of Power - French & Raven

One of the most notable studies on power was conducted by social psychologists John French and Bertram Raven in 1959.

They identified five bases of power:

1.Legitimate – This comes from the belief that a person has the right to make demands, and expect compliance and obedience from others.

2.Reward – This results from one person's ability to compensate another for compliance.

3.Coercive – This comes from the belief that a person can punish others for noncompliance.

4.Expert – This is based on a person's superior skill and knowledge.

5.Referent – This is the result of a person's perceived attractiveness, worthiness, and right to respect from others.

The Expert & Referent powers are categorised as 'Personal Power Sources'
The Legitimate , reward & Coercive powers are categorised as 'Positional Power Sources'

The most effective leaders use mainly referent and expert power.

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