PHILIPPINE POLITICS

AND GOVERNANCE
CLASS ACTIVITY: PICTOPINION
•What do these have in
common? How they
differ from this
commonality? Why?
THE CONCEPT OF POWER
 POWER

•Power can be defined in

many ways. Most simply, it is
the ability to get what you
want, or as scholar Kenneth
Boulding said, power is "the
ability to change the
future."
 POWER

• Power is the ability to get someone to do something

he/she wants to accomplish thus making things
happen in the way he/she wants. In having such
ability, along with the exercise of power is an
influence.
• ➢ Influence is the process by which a person’s
affects the behavior and feeling of another person.
➢ In order to influence a person there must an
authority which is the right to change another
person.
• Power is a well prime ingredient of politics (Roskin
et.al.,2012).
•Is power always
positive? negative?
both?
•What is the purpose of
power?
CLASS ACTIVITY:
 WHAT IF???

•If given a chance to

assume government
position, what would it
be? How are you going
to exercise the power
vested in you?
•We have many different
definition of power.
Based on the given
definition what is the best
definition of power for
you? Why?
 GROUP WORK: SMALL GROUP
DISCUSSION

•Discuss the nature,

dimensions, types and
consequences of power by
giving reading text to each
group. Each group will be
given time to present their
work.
THREE DIMENSIONS OF POWER:
 ISSUE
(EMOTIONAL POWER)
The first face (or dimension), as proposed by
such theorists as Dahl who saw power as a
'relation among people'. It is the ability of
one person to achieve compliance by
others who change how they behave as a
result of the power being exerted. It can be
seen in systems of ruling elites, where few
people have significant power. As such,
power is direct, with identification of an issue
and a singular response to this. It is, in
essence, about making decisions.
In governmental power, this can be seen when the
government makes a decision, typically through
law-making, that requires obedience by the
broader population. Such decisions may be
debated openly with opportunity for consultation
and challenge along the way. Despite this
openness, the focus is still on decision.
This can be seen as an 'open face', where it is clear
who is making the decision and why they are
making it. As this can be seen, it is more likely to
be trusted and consequently obeyed with little
question.
 AGENDA
(INFORMATIONAL POWER)
• The second face, as proposed by theorists
such as Bachrach and Baratz, adds the
more subtle system of power, where
decision is made within a complex system. In
this situation, power is not just about making
decisions, but also about setting the
agenda that leads to decisions. In other
words, if you can control the context within
which decisions are made, then you can
influence those decisions.
In governmental power, this can be seen in decisions
made 'behind closed doors' and in the 'corridors of
power', where who is deciding and why is seldom
clear. In such contexts, power is held not only by
elected officials but also by the whisperers and
assistants who set up meetings, shape agendas and
write the minutes.
This can be seen as a 'secretive face', where it is not
clear who is making the decision. This can lead to
problems as other people suspect that there are
corrupt elements to the choice, such as those
based on political agendas and personal gain.
 MANIPULATION
(PHYSICAL POWER)
• Lukes adds a third face, that of even
more subtle aspect of manipulating
the psychology of anyone and
everyone affected. This can be seen
as similar to the Marxist view of
ideological power, where the ability to
control what people think of as being
'right' can lead to acceptance of
biased decisions without question
In governmental power, this appears in propaganda,
spin and crafting of speeches that are deliberately
designed to change minds before the decision is
announced. For example if legislation against trade
unions is planned, then a provocative rhetoric of how
these unions cause problems may be started some
time beforehand. Any union action then plays directly
into the government's hands.
This can be seen as a 'deceptive face', where trickery
and psychological methods are the primary tool in
shifting values and changing what people consider to
be important. The problem with this method is that
when it is discovered, it can lead to a sharp loss
in trust and consequent betrayal effects.
SOURCES OF POWER
ORGANIZATIONAL POWER
• is a power derived from a person’s position in an
organization and from control over valuable
resources afforded by that position.
Reward power. It is the extent to which a leader
can use extrinsic and intrinsic rewards to control the
influence other people.
Coercive power. It is the degree to which a leader
can deny desired rewards or administer
punishments to control other people and let them
follow his wants.
 ORGANIZATIONAL POWER

Legitimate power. It is the extent to a leader can

use subordinates ‘ internalized values or beliefs that
the boss has a right of command to control his
subordinates’ behavior. That id legitimacy is lost,
authority will not be accepted by subordinates. It is
otherwise known as formal hierarchical authority.
Information power. The leader has the access to
and control of information.This complements
legitimate hierarchical power.This could be granted
to specialists and managers in the middle of the
information system. The people may protest
information in order to increase their power,
 ORGANIZATIONAL POWER

Process power. The leader has full control over the

methods of production and analysis. Thereby,
placing an individual in the position of influencing
how inputs are transformed into outputs as well as
managing the analytical process used to make
choices.
 Representative power. The legal right conferred to
speak by the firm as a representative of a
potentially significant group composed of
individuals from departments or outside the firm.
Helps complex organizations deal with a variety of
constituents
INDIVIDUAL POWER OR
PERSONAL POWER
 INDIVIDUAL POWER OR PERSONAL
POWER
• is a power derived from personal characteristics that are of
value to the organization.
 Expert power The ability to control another person’s behavior
through the possession of knowledge , experience, or
judgement that the other person needs but not have.
• Is relative, not absolute.
 Rational persuasion The ability to control another person’s
behavior by convincing the person of a desirability of a goal
and a reasonable way of achieving it.
• Much of a supervisor’s daily activity involves rational
persuasion.
 Referent power The ability to control another behavior
because the persons wants to identify with the power source.
• Can be enhanced by linking to morality and ethics and long
term vision.
TYPES OF POWER
 COERCIVE POWER
• This kind of power involves the usage of threat to
make people do what one desires.
• Coercive power is the application of negative
influences. It includes the ability to demote or to
withhold other rewards. The desire for valued
rewards or the fear of having them withheld that
ensures the obedience of those under power.
Coercive power tends to be the most obvious but
least effective form of power as it builds resentment
and resistance from the people who experience it.
Threats and punishment are common tools of
coercion.
 REWARD POWER
Reward power depends on the ability of the power
wielder to confer valued material rewards, it refers to the
degree to which the individual can give others a reward
of some kind such as benefits, time off, desired gifts,
promotions or increases in pay or responsibility.
As the name suggests, this type of power uses rewards,
perks, new projects or training opportunities, better roles
and monetary benefits to influence people. However an
interesting aspect of this type of power is that, it is not
powerful enough in itself, as decisions related to rewards
do not rest solely with the person promising them,
because in organizations, a lot of other people come
into play like senior managers and board.
 LEGITIMATE POWER
This power emanates from an official position held by
someone, be it in an organization, beaurocracy or
government etc. The duration of this power is short lived
as a person can use it only till the time he/she holds that
position, as well as, the scope of the power is small as it is
strictly defined by the position held.
Also called "positional power," it is the power of an
individual because of the relative position and duties of
the holder of the position within an organization.
Legitimate power is formal authority delegated to the
holder of the position. It is usually accompanied by
various attributes of power such as a uniform, a title, or
an imposing physical office.
 EXPERT POWER
This is a personal kind of power which owes its genesis to
the skills and expertise possessed by an individual, which
is of higher quality and not easily available. In such a
situation, the person can exercise the power of
knowledge to influence people. Since, it is very person
specific and skills can be enhanced with time; it has
more credibility and respect.
Expert power is an individual's power deriving from the skills
or expertise of the person and the organization's needs
for those skills and expertise. Unlike the others, this type of
power is usually highly specific and limited to the
particular area in which the expert is trained and
qualified.
 REFERENT POWER
This is a power wielded by celebrities and film stars as they
have huge following amongst masses who like them,
identify with them and follow them. Hence, they exert
lasting influence on a large number of people for a large
number of decisions; like from what car to buy to which
candidate to choose for a higher office in the country.
Referent power is the power or ability of individuals to
attract others and build loyalty. It is based on
the charisma and interpersonal skills of the power holder.
A person may be admired because of specific personal
trait, and this admiration creates the opportunity for
interpersonal influence. Here the person under power
desires to identify with these personal qualities, and gains
satisfaction from being an accepted follower
CONSEQUENCES OF POWER
AUTHORITY
 TYPES OF AUTHORITY

•CHARISMATIC
It is an influenced
possessed by person by
virtue of their personal
magnetism.
 RATIONAL - LEGAL

A leadership based on
established law. People
obey the leader or
executive because they
accept his or her power
under the law.
 TRADITIONAL

•The leadership is
based from the
culture that is
people often FRESA
TUMA
GROUP WORK: HUGOT/ PICK-UP LINES

•Each group arrive at a

‘hugot line’ or ‘pick up line’
about the concept of
POWER. They should present
these in front.