Political Concepts of Power and Authority

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Political Concepts of Power and Authority
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Objective

• To investigate and understand the political
  concepts of power and authority.

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What is Power?

• Political power, is the ability to make and carry
  out decisions, is dependent on certain sources of
  power.
• The exercise of power therefore involves such
  processes as force, coercion, manipulation,
  bargaining or persuasion.

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What is Authority?

• Authority suggests consent and legitimacy. Power
  suggests force violence and a lack of consent.
• It is useful to remember the phrase Authority
  is legitimate power.

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What makes authority legitimate?

• According to Max Weber (Sociologist) people give
  their consent to the rule of three different
  types of authority
• Charismatic
• Traditional
• Legal Rational

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Charismatic Authority

• People consent o be ruled by people with special
  human qualities.
• Such qualities inspire loyalty and obedience.
• Examples throughout history include
• Napoleon
• Hitler
• Gandhi

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Traditional Authority

• Some people accept the power and rule of others
  because there is a long standing tradition of
  things being like that.
• The British Royal family could be said to have
  traditional authority.
• Similarly a society that venerates age (where
  elders rule) often does so on the grounds of
  tradition.

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Rational Legal Authority

• In modern societies authority is made legitimate
  by the acceptance of an established set of
  sensible rules, laws and procedures by the
  majority of the population.
• For example the authority of Parliament and the
  Prime Minster.

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Real Authority

• Most people and organizations in authority have
  elements of all three of Max Webers different
  types of authority.
• Why do we obey traffic lights?

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The End