POWER & AUTHORITY

‘Influence and power flow from

legitimacy, which is in several ways
determined or affected by
followers, and their response to
leaders’ (Hollander 1993, p 29).
Thus, a good leader might be a
product not only of her/his personal
qualities but of the followers she/he
has.
 LEADER-FOLLOWER
RELATIONSHIP
• ‘Without followers there are no leaders [...] For any group or organization to
succeed, there must be people who willingly and effectively follow just as
there must be those who willingly and effectively lead [...] Both leader and
follower roles are proactive; together they can achieve a shared vision’ (Daft
2012)
• It is also argued that confident, risk-taking and strong followers, who feel
empowered with a strong sense of ownership for their work, are essential for
the sustainability of organisations (Lundin & Lancaster 1990; Rosenau 2004).
• While highlighting the divide created between those who lead and who follow,
Hollander (1974) suggests that ‘all leaders, some of the time and in varying
degrees, are followers, and followers are not immutably cast in non-leader
roles. Often, they may, and do, become leaders’ (p 20).
LEADERS VS FOLLOWERS
 IMPACT OF LEADERSHIP STYLES
Research evidence indicates that leadership style affects the performance and
attitudes of subordinates. Day and Hamblin (1964) showed that the performance of
subordinates changed according to the use of punishment and closeness of
supervision by the leader. They contrast ‘close supervision’ with ‘anomic supervision’.
• Close supervision ‘describes the degree to which a supervisor specifies the roles
of subordinates and checks up to see that they comply with the specifications,’
• Anomic supervision ‘would involve no specifications (that is, no expectations or
norms) and no checkups’ (Day & Hamblin 1964, p 500).
However, by adopting a supervisory style which ‘involves a moderate number of
specifications and checkups, at least enough to let the workers know what they are
supposed to do’ (Day & Hamblin 1964, p 500), there could be greater chances of
working collaboratively towards common goals. Thus, by balancing the two there
were greater chances of success for the leader in working with the followers.
PLURALISTIC LEADERSHIP
Leadership is not reserved for the
minority, but is a responsibility that we
all must embrace. It is an action many
can take, not a position only a few can
hold. It is the practice of values, through
a keen understanding of ones personal
and social responsibility, to engage
diverse community members and groups
in working together effectively while
moving towards common goals (Schmitz
2011)
 STYLES OF FOLLOWERSHIP
1. Independent, active, critical thinkers: who
approach subjects, situations, and problems
with thoughtful questions and in an unbiased
and objective way. They are mindful of the
effects of their and other people’s behavior
and actions on achieving organizational goals.
2. Dependent, passive, uncritical thinkers: do
not consider possibilities beyond what they
are told, do not contribute to the development
of the organization, and accept the leaders’
ideas without assessing or evaluating them.
FOLLOWERSHIP STYLES
PRAGMATIC FOLLOWER
ALIENATED FOLLOWER
CONFORMIST FOLLOWER
PASSIVE FOLLOWER
EXEMPLARY FOLLOWER
 THE PRAGMATIC FOLLOWER
• Believes that staying within the
rules is important, and constantly
tries to avoid uncertainty and
instability
• Keeps things in perspective and
plays by the rules and regulations
(positive)
• Plays political games, risk averse and
bound to cover her/his tracks
(negative)
 THE ALIENATED FOLLOWER
Believes that the leader does not fully
recognize or utilize her/his talents
Is an eccentric, individualist who
thinks for herself/himself and at
times plays the devil’s advocate
(negative)
Can be troublesome and cynical. Does
not develop as a team player.
THE CONFORMIST FOLLOWER
Believes that following the
established order is more important
than outcomes
Accepts assignments easily, commits
herself/himself to the team and
leader, and seeks to minimize conflict
(positive)
Lacks originality and initiative,
unwilling to make unpopular decisions
or take risks, and unwilling to face any
 THE PASSIVE FOLLOWER
Believes that the organization does not want
her/his ideas, and strongly suspects that the
leader would do what she/he pleases without
paying attention to what the followers
think/feel.
She/he relies on the leader’s judgment and
thinking while showing compliance to decisions
without putting up any resistance (positive)
They merely put in the required hours without
any attempt at doing anything extra. Such
followers require excessive supervision
(negative)
THE EXEMPLARY FOLLOWER
Believes her/his contribution is essential
and given much importance
Contributes above and beyond her/his
actual job-requirements, seeks to add value
and assists others wholeheartedly
(positive)
She/he may be highly idealistic and can
suffer disillusionment quite frequently on
not finding similar enthusiasm and
involvement in the organization resulting in
burnout (negative)
POWER, INFLUENCE & AUTHORITY
POWER is the potential ability of one person in an organization
to influence other people to bring about desired outcomes.
INFLUENCE refers to the effect a person’s actions have on
the attitudes, values, beliefs or actions of others. Thus, where
power is the capacity to cause a change in a person, influence
may be thought of as the degree of actual change (Daft 2012).
AUTHORITY involves the rights, prerogatives, obligations, and
duties associated with particular positions in an organization or
social system. A leader’s authority usually includes the right to
make particular types of decisions for the organization (Yukl
2011). AUTHORITARIANISM is the belief that power and
status differences should exist in an organization. Highly
authoritarian individuals follow conventional rules and values,
obey established authority, respect power and toughness, judge
others critically, and disapprove of the expression of personal
feelings. They are unlikely to want to share power with
subordinates (Daft 2012)
TYPES OF POWER
 HARD POWER
Hard power stems mostly from a person’s position of authority.
It leads a supervisor to influence subordinates with the use of
rewards and punishments, or allows a manager to issue orders
and expect them to be obeyed. It includes the following:
• Legitimate power: is the authority granted from a formal
position in an organization allowing followers to accept the
legitimate rights of formal leaders to set goals, make decisions,
and direct activities.
• Reward power: stems from the authority to bestow rewards on
other people. Such leaders can use rewards to influence
subordinates’ behavior.
• Coercive power: refers to the power to punish or recommend
punishment. It may entail firing, demoting, criticizing,
reprimanding, attaching a negative letter in her/his file or
hurting her/his chance of a raise or promotion. (Daft 2012)
 SOFT POWER
Soft power focuses more on personal characteristics and
interpersonal relationships more than on a position of authority.
It includes the following:
• Expert power: results from a leader’s special knowledge or skill
regarding tasks performed by followers. When a leader is a true
expert, subordinates go along with recommendations because of
her/his superior knowledge. People throughout the organization
with expertise and knowledge can use it to influence or place
limits on decisions made by people above them in the organization.
• Referent power: comes from leader personality characteristics
that command followers’ identification, respect and admiration so
they want to emulate the leader. When workers admire a
supervisor because of the way he or she deals with them, the
influence is based on referent power. This has more to do with
the leader’s personal characteristics (charismatic leadership)
than her/his title (Daft 2012)
 RELATIONSHIP OF CONCEPTS IN ROSABETH KANTER’S (1979) STRUCTURAL
THEORY OF POWER IN ORGANIZATIONS

SYSTEMIC POWER ACCESS TO JOB PERSONAL IMPACT WORK

FACTORS RELATED ON EMPLOYEES EFFECTIVENESS
EMPOWERMENT
LOCATION IN FORMAL & STRUCTURES
INFORMAL SYSTEMS (Psychological
Formal Power Empowerment)
achievement
Job definition increased and successes
Discretion (flexible) autonomy
Recognition (visible)
Relevance (central) opportunity decreased respect and
influences leads to results in
structures Job stress cooperation
power lowered in
Informal Power determines structures organization
burnout
• Connections
inside the resources increased
satisfaction client
organization information
satisfaction
• alliance with: support
increased
sponsors, peers,
commitment
subordinates,
proportions
cross-functional
structure
groups
• Connections
outside the
organization
Heather K. Spence Laschinger, 1995
 EMPOWERMENT
‘Many leaders are shifting from efforts to control behavior
through carrot-and-stick approaches to providing people with
the power, information, and authority that enables them to
find greater intrinsic satisfaction with their work.
Empowerment refers to power sharing, the delegation of power
or authority to subordinates in the organization’ (Daft 2012).
Five elements must be in place before employees can be truly
empowered to perform their jobs effectively:
• Employees receive information about company performance
• Employees receive knowledge and skills to contribute to
company goals
• Employees have the power to make substantive decisions
• Employees understand the meaning and impact of their jobs
• Employees are rewarded based on company performance
 FACTORS INFLUENCING
EMPOWERMENT
• OPPORTUNITY: provision or autonomy,
personal growth, a sense of challenge and a
chance to learn and develop
• INFORMATION: provision of relevant data,
technical knowledge and expertise required to
function effectively in one’s position
• FEEDBACK: guidance and feedback received
from superiors, peers and subordinates
• RESOURCES: the equipment, materials,
supplies, support, money and time essential
for the accomplishment of organizational goals
CHANGE ORIENTED LEADERSHIP
In order to make change, leaders can:
• Develop innovative ideas for change, engage in
new ways of thinking and acting, experiment
with new concepts, and search for creative
solutions to problems
• Exert upward influence in the organization to
gain support from their bosses for
implementation of those ideas
• Inspire and motivate subordinates/ peers by
articulating and selling their vision to make
change and transform that vision into a reality
 LEADERSHIP STYLES
 Empowering leadership: focuses on actions of the leader, specifically sharing
power or giving more responsibility and autonomy to employees (Kirkman &
Rosen, 1997; 1999; Strauss, 1963). It also focuses on employees’ response to
empowerment, specifically employees’ motivation (Conger & Kanungo, 1988;
Kirkman & Rosen, 1997; 1999; Spreitzer, 1995; Thomas & Velthouse, 1990).
 Democratic leadership: has been distinguished from autocratic and laissez-
faire styles, where democratic leaders rely upon group decision making, active
member involvement, honest praise and criticism, and a degree of comradeship.
By contrast, leaders using the other styles were either domineering or
uninvolved (Lewin & Lippitt. 1938; Lewin, Lippitt & White, 1939; White &
Lippitt, 1960).
• Distributed Leadership: involves ‘multiple leaders’ having formal or informal
leadership positions, it regards followers as one of the core elements of
leadership practice and the main emphasis is placed not on the actions of
individuals but on interactions between different people (Spillane 2005)
• Collaborative Leadership: is one in which leaders and followers complement
work carried out by each member of the group, making it ‘[a] reciprocal
process … [leading them] to realise goals independently or mutually held by
both’ (Burns 1978).
 TRUST
ORGANIZATIONAL
AUTONOMY/ACCOUNTABILITY COMMITMENT

JOB SATISFACTION

JOB PERFORMANCE

EMPOWERMENT
SELF EFFICACY

WORK EFFECTIVENESS

INFLUENCE OF LEADERSHIP
BEHAVIORS
IMMEDIATE SUPERVISORS’
POWER
WORK TEAMS
PSYCHOLOGICAL EMPOWERMENT
“A psychological state that employees must experience
for empowerment interventions to be successful…”
(Spreitzer 1995).
Four components:
meaning - congruence between job requirements and beliefs

competence - confidence in an individual’s belief in his or her

capability to perform activities with skill
self-determination - feelings of control over one’s work and
behavior. Recognizing having a choice in initiating and
regulating actions
impact - sense of being able to influence important strategic,
administrative and operating outcomes within the
organization
“[It also] describes how the intrinsic motivation and self-
efficacy of people are influenced by leadership behavior,
job characteristics, organization structure, and their own
needs and values” (Yukl 2011)
 SHOULD EMPOWERMENT BE
PROVIDED TO ALL?
• Participative practices and employee involvement programs
do not necessarily reduce feelings of powerlessness or leave
people feeling that their work is meaningful and worthwhile
(Conger & Kanungo 1988). For example, allowing people to
determine how to do a trivial and demeaning task is unlikely
to increase their feelings of self-worth and self-fulfillment.
• Delegating responsibility for a more significant task will not
be empowering if people lack the skills and knowledge
required to perform the task successfully and are worried
about failure.
• The opportunity to elect a leader may do little to reduce
feelings of powerlessness if the choice is between candidates
who are equally unsatisfactory (Yukl 2011)
BENEFITS AND CONSEQUENCES
OF EMPOWERMENT
• Stronger task commitment
• Greater initiative in carrying out role
responsibilities
• Greater persistence in the face of obstacles
and temporary setbacks
• More innovation and learning, and stronger
optimism about the eventual success of the
work
• Higher job satisfaction
• Stronger organizational commitment
• Less vacancy
POTENTIAL COSTS & RISKS
• Higher costs for selection and training
• Higher labour costs for skilled employees
• Inconsistent service quality
• Expensive giveaways and bad decisions by some
employees
• Customer feelings of inequality about unequal
treatment
• Opposition by middle managers who feel
threatened
• Conflicts from raising employee expectations
beyond what top management is willing to concede.
(Yukl 2011)
 EDUCATION VS PEDAGOGY
“ Dewey (1916) also argued that schools can and should
be places where individual beliefs and world-views are
honoured…[and] viewed [education] as the bedrock of
equal opportunity and access to the benefits of
democracy” (Hoff, Yoder and Hoff 2006). For Dewey
(2006), educating the social individual began with
‘psychological insight into the child’s capacities,
interests, and habits’.

“Pedagogy—places learning at the service of

government, political power and the economy, while
education—represents that more disinterested
endeavour, in which teacher and pupil engage in a form
of enquiry,” (Hinchliffe 2001).