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    Political Elites & Political Leaders

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    Taniusha Dumbrava
    The document discusses political elites and political leaders. It defines political elites as small groups that have significant influence over political decision making and control political power. It describes several theories of political elites put forth by scholars like Mosca, Pareto, and Mills. Mosca saw society divided between a ruling minority and a subject majority, while Mills identified three institutions whose leaders comprised the power elite. The document also defines political leaders as individuals in established political positions or influential people outside of them, noting qualities like honesty, compassion, and integrity are important for effective leadership.

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    Political Elites & Political Leaders

    Uploaded by

    Taniusha Dumbrava
    120 views42 pages
    The document discusses political elites and political leaders. It defines political elites as small groups that have significant influence over political decision making and control political power. It describes several theories of political elites put forth by scholars like Mosca, Pareto, and Mills. Mosca saw society divided between a ruling minority and a subject majority, while Mills identified three institutions whose leaders comprised the power elite. The document also defines political leaders as individuals in established political positions or influential people outside of them, noting qualities like honesty, compassion, and integrity are important for effective leadership.

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    Elite

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    The document discusses political elites and political leaders. It defines political elites as small groups that have significant influence over political decision making and control political power. It describes several theories of political elites put forth by scholars like Mosca, Pareto, and Mills. Mosca saw society divided between a ruling minority and a subject majority, while Mills identified three institutions whose leaders comprised the power elite. The document also defines political leaders as individuals in established political positions or influential people outside of them, noting qualities like honesty, compassion, and integrity are important for effective leadership.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pptx, pdf, or txt
    120 views42 pages

    Political Elites & Political Leaders

    Uploaded by

    Taniusha Dumbrava
    The document discusses political elites and political leaders. It defines political elites as small groups that have significant influence over political decision making and control political power. It describes several theories of political elites put forth by scholars like Mosca, Pareto, and Mills. Mosca saw society divided between a ruling minority and a subject majority, while Mills identified three institutions whose leaders comprised the power elite. The document also defines political leaders as individuals in established political positions or influential people outside of them, noting qualities like honesty, compassion, and integrity are important for effective leadership.

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    You are on page 1of 42

    POLITICAL

    ELITES &
    POLITICAL
    LEADERS

    1. The concept of Political


    Elite
    2. Theories of Political Elite
    3. Political leaders

    1. The concept of Political


    Elite

    An lite is a selected and small group


    of citizens and/or organizations that
    controls a large amount of power.
    Based on the social distinction with
    regard to other groups of lower strata,
    most of these selected groups are
    constantly searching differentiation as
    well as separation from the rest of
    society. Normally the concept of lite is
    used to analyze the groups that either
    control or are situated at the top of
    societies. The creation of an lite is
    also the result of their evolution
    throughout the history of humanity.

    Elite are the most influential


    and prestigious stratum in a
    society. The elite are those
    persons who are recognized as
    outstanding leaders in a given
    field. Thus, there are political,
    religious, scientific, business,
    and artistic elite.
    Pareto, Mosca, Wright Mills,
    Lasswell, Mannheim,
    Bottomore, etc., have given
    different definitions.

    Parry Geriant (1969) has


    defined elite as small
    minorities who play an
    exceptionally influential
    part in the affairs of
    society in specific
    fields.

    A political lite is a group of


    people, corporations, political
    parties who manage and organize
    government and all the
    manifestations of political power:
    elites may defined as persons
    who, by virtue of their strategic
    locations in large or otherwise
    pivotal organizations and
    movements, are able to affect
    political outcomes regularly and
    substantially (Higley, 2008: 3).

    Political elite is a group of


    individuals holding
    strategic positions within a
    political system, which
    enables these individuals
    to influence political
    decision making directly
    and regularly.

    Political elites include


    members of the political
    leadership of a country,
    those who represent the
    country abroad, those who
    discuss and make the most
    important political
    decisions, policies and
    laws.

    Non-political elites are: military


    leadership, civil society and
    business community elites,
    intellectual elites and religious
    elites. These sub-elites do have
    some limited influence in the
    political arena, but since they
    lack the power to make policies
    and make decisions, they are
    not considered as members of
    the political elite.

    Power elitesare the


    traditional decision makers.
    They have a strong hold on
    direct power, though has been
    shown through nonviolent
    conflict and the paradox of
    repression (think of the
    dictators overthrown by
    popular movements) they
    nonetheless depend on a
    limited sort of consent from
    those over whom theyrule.

    Political elite include those:


    (a) Who are elected/nominated to
    central and state legislatures,
    (b) Who occupy important positions in
    national or state-level political parties,
    (c) Individuals who do not hold any
    formal positions either in the
    government or in political parties but
    are still considered as persons of
    great political prestige and power
    because they control powerexercisers.

    The New Elites


    The new elites or the modern elites
    are products of the industrial society
    and represents the forces of
    modernization and development.
    The new elites are the elected elites.
    The bureaucracy as the main
    instrument of public administration
    has come to be a very powerful
    group-an elite group, in all the
    states. Bureaucracy is a new elite, a
    powerful elite at work in every state.

    The political elites are


    popularly classified into
    three forms:

    the elites who enjoy power, influence


    and authority on the basis of traditions
    and traditional values. Customs,
    religion, land, and family are the bases
    of their power and authority. Wealth,
    property and family status, are usually
    the important sources of power of the
    traditional elites.
    Princes, religious leaders are the
    examples of traditional elites. Even in
    contemporary times, when secularism
    has come to be universally accepted
    as a value, religious leaders continue
    to act as elite groups in almost all the

    Aristocratic or Noble Elites


    In almost all such societies as were in
    the past governed by Kings,
    aristocratic elites or royal elites
    continue to wield power and influence
    even after the transformation of
    monarchical regimes into democratic
    regimes. The House of Lords in
    England is an example of an
    aristocratic elite house within the
    democratic political system.

    2. Theories of Political Elite

    Classical Elite Theory

    The existence of small, organized


    groups of individuals who control
    political power was considered a
    fact of life by scholars including G.
    Mosca, V. Pareto and R. Michels
    (Michels, 2001; Mosca, 1939;
    Pareto, 1935). These three authors
    used different terms (ruling
    class, elites and oligarchy,
    respectively) to refer to elites, but
    they discussed various aspects of
    the same phenomenon.

    Elite theorys origins about a


    century ago in the writings of
    Gaetano Mosca (1858- 1941),
    Vilfredo Pareto (1848-1923), and
    Robert Michels (1876-1936). They
    analyze small, organized groups of
    individuals who control political
    power. These three authors used
    different terms (ruling class,
    elites and oligarchy,
    respectively) to refer to elites, but
    they discussed various aspects of
    the same phenomenon.

    Mosca emphasized the


    ways in which tiny
    minorities out-organize
    and outwit large
    majorities, adding that
    political classes
    Moscas term for
    political elites usually
    have a certain material,
    intellectual, or even
    moral superiority over

    There are two classes of people


    (according to Mosca), the Rulers
    and the Ruled.
    Ruling Classa. Few
    b. Perform all political functions,
    c. Collects and enjoys power.
    Ruled Class a. Numerous
    b. Controlled by legal means
    c. Give power to Rulers (no
    choice

    social mobility, elites would


    consist of the most talented
    and deserving individuals; but
    in actual societies elites are
    those most adept at using the
    two modes of political rule,
    force and persuasion, and who
    usually enjoy important
    advantages such as inherited
    wealth and family
    connections. Pareto sketched
    alternating types of governing

    Three major assumptions


    about social stratification:
    individuals are physically,
    morally, and intellectually
    differentthe social classes
    are not entirely distinct, even
    in countries where a caste
    system prevailsin modern
    civilized countries circulation
    among the various classes is
    exceedingly rapid .

    what they do can be divided


    into governing (directly and
    indirectly affect government)
    and non-governing elite
    Special cases some are
    governing elites though not
    entirely qualified, and different
    groups move in and out of elite
    status (circulation of the elites).
    Elites can circulate due to
    supply and demand
    considerations
    Elite class can be eroded as
    members of the lower class join
    it, or due to the shortcomings of

    large organizations for leaders


    and experts in order to
    operate efficiently; as these
    individuals gain control of
    funds, information flows,
    promotions, and other aspects
    of organizational functioning
    power becomes concentrated
    in their hands. Emphasizing
    the inescapability and also the
    relative autonomy of elites, all
    three men characterized

    In his pioneer work, The


    Power Elite (1956), American
    radical sociologist C.W. Mills
    identified three key
    institutionsthe major
    corporations, the military and
    the government. Those who
    occupied the command posts
    in these institutions formed
    these ruling elites. Mills
    termed them as power elite.

    types of elites:
    The political elite,
    Military elite and
    The Industrial elite.
    Together, these made up the
    power elite. The power elite are
    composed of men whose positions
    enable them to transcend the
    ordinary environments of ordinary
    men and women; they are in
    positions to make decisions
    having major consequences . They
    are in command of the major
    hierarchies and organizations of

    political leaders from


    whatsoever class they
    may be drawn will be
    representative of the
    dominant class. The
    Marxian analysis
    indicates continuing and
    increasing inaccessibility
    or polarization of the
    dominant and

    3. Political leaders

    A political leader, or a
    politician, can be anyone
    who has taken up the
    responsibility of
    governing a party, city,
    state, region or even an
    entire nation.

    identified as any
    occupant of an
    established political
    position or as any
    person, in or out of such
    a position, whose
    political activity has
    more influence upon a
    group's behavior than
    has the activity of the

    Political leaders are not just


    people who govern nations
    during peace times but also
    during times of crisis. They are
    people who are responsible for
    making and implementing
    strategies and policies meant
    to better serve the interests of
    the country they govern.

    A look at the political


    leaders hall of fame would
    reveal names like Abraham
    Lincoln, Mahatma Gandhi,
    Adolf Hitler, Winston
    Churchill, Lenin, Stalin.

    There are many roles for


    leaders to playleaders may be party
    organizers, legislators,
    judges, executives,
    diplomats, or so on.

    Qualities of Good
    Political Leaders

    Being honest can sometimes


    be difficult because it makes
    individuals vulnerable. It
    reveals who we really are and
    discloses our mistakes, which
    gives others the opportunity
    to criticize or reject openly.
    Honesty develops character
    and builds credibility and
    trust, which are the
    foundation to evoke
    confidence and respect from
    those around you, and in the

    quality of understanding the


    suffering of others and
    wanting to do something to
    alleviate that suffering. While
    many see compassion as a
    weakness, true compassion is
    a characteristic that converts
    knowledge to wisdom. Good
    political leaders use
    compassion to see the needs
    of those he or she leads and to
    determine the course of action

    Integrity
    The word integrity is defined as the
    adherence to moral and ethical
    principles; the soundness of moral
    character. It is a synonym for honesty
    and uprightness, and is a vital
    characteristic for those in political
    leadership. Political leaders who possess
    integrity can be trusted because he or
    she never veers from inner values, even
    when it might benefit them to do so. A
    leader must have the trust of followers.
    This requires the highest standard of
    integrity.

    Having confidence in a
    political leader is about having
    faithor belief that he or she
    will act in a right, proper, or
    effective way. A good political
    leader needs to be both
    confident in himself or herself
    as well in their ability to lead.
    Leaders who possess this
    quality inspire others, drawing
    on a level of trust which
    sparks the motivation to get
    others on board and get the

    Flexibility for a political leader is


    about understanding the give-andtake aspects of politics, and the
    ability to find the common
    ground. Good politicians listen
    carefully to all sides, to not only
    hear their arguments but to
    especially learn what it will take
    on behalf of all parties involved to
    reach a consensus. This
    characteristic allows political
    leaders to recognize setbacks and
    criticism, to learn from them and
    move forward.

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