Week 5 Flashcards
Power
- the capacity to influence the behaviour of B, so that B acts in accordance with A
Power and dependency
- the more that B depends on A, the more power A has over B
- B’s dependency is inversely proportional to the alternative sources that A has
Scarcity
- if what you have is plentiful or rare
Importance
- whether or not anyone wants what you have
Nonsubstitutability
- if what you have can be substituted or not
What creates dependency?
- scarcity
- importance
- nonsubstitutuability
What are the bases of power?
- coercive power
- reward power
- legitimate power
- expert power
- referent power
- information power
coercive power
- fear based
- “Do it or else I’ll make you suffer!”
reward power
- gainful based
- “Do it and I’ll pay you”
legitimate power
- position/hierarchy based
- do it because i’m your boss and I said so
expert power
- knowledge based
- “do it this way because I know what i’m talking about”
referent power
- attachment based
- “do it for me old sport”
information power
- access-based
- “do it and i’ll let you in on a secret”
responses to the basis of power
- commitment
- compliance
- resistance
commitment
- enthusiastic about the request and show initiative and persistence in carrying it out
compliance
- go along with the request grudgingly, put in minimal effort, and take initiative in carrying out requests
resistance
- oppose the request and try to avoid it with such tactics such as refusing, stalling, or arguing about it.
political behaviour
- activities that are outside one’s formal role (i.e. not part of one’s specific job duties) that influence, or try to influence, the distribution of advantages and disadvantages within the organization
Why is workplace politics a reality?
- diversity of values, goals, and interests
- limited resources
- “facts” used for decisions around distributing resources are open to interpretation
- “facts” are rarely objective
social astuteness
- accurately interpret their and others’ behaviour
political skill
- the ability to effectively understand others at work, and to use such knowledge to influence others to act in ways that enhance one’s personal and /or organizational objectives
interpersonal influence
- adapt and calibrate behaviour to situation
networking ability
- identify and develop large and diverse networks
apparent sincerity
- appear to have high levels of integrity