Reference no: EM132374383

Topic:

Select four people currently in the media (celebrity, political, religious, etc.) and discuss their exertion of one of the sources of power. Students must cover all four of the sources of power discussed on page 263 of your textbook. Apply one source of power to each of the four people selected.

Requirement :

300 word for initial post

with 2 APA references

200 words for classmate reply.

Classmate reply:

Sources of Power

There are multiple sources of power that an individual can use. Some of the prominent ones recorded by various authors are as follows:

· informational sources of power

· power based on position in an organization

· relationship-based sources of power

· contextual sources of power

I would like to discuss each one of the above 4 sources of power, by giving an example of one contemporary personality who may have used it. We see individuals first when we go into an organization, not situations. People talk, move around and do stuff (Lewicki, Saunders & Barry, pg 159). Power is derived from where each individual is in the division of labor and the organization's communication system (Lewicki, Saunders & Barry, pg 161).

A great example of informational sources of power is a journalist. When I say journalists I do not mean only the ones that appear on network television and radio. Given this day and age, where the internet is the biggest platform for any industry, including journalism and information, I include youtube channels, and podcasts also in news or journalism industry. I particularly follow and the news coverage and discussion by Kim Iverson. She is an independent journalist who is not allied or bound by any corporate/mainstream channel which gives her the freedom to break free from any bias or partisanship. The information that journalist has gives them the power to influence the thoughts and ideologies of thousands of people that listen to them or follow them.

My next famous personality is an example of power based on position in an organization. The one person that comes to my mind is Tim Cook, CEO of Apple Inc. Power based on position exists at the foundation of our social structure. Tim Cook has the power to influence the entire business and strategic future of apple products as well as its services.

Relationship based power is based on an appeal to commonalities that the person has with the target audience that they have the relationship with. A strong example of this type of power can be His Holiness Dalai Lama. In Tibet, the spiritual leader of the entire state or community is revered and referred to as Dalai Lama. The name of the current Dalai Lama is Lhamo Thondup and he is the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet. His outreach to the masses of all age groups is because of the spiritual relationship he has with his people.

A bright example of contextual source of power is Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. Over the years his ideas have gradually found more acceptances among people from various groups and sections of society. His ideas which were earlier termed impractical and too radical are now considered as the most effective alternative plan by most Democratic primary candidates.

Although there are significant theoretical statements about what power is and how it should influence relationship dynamics and there are isolated pockets of studies on how power affects interpersonal results, power has never been a hotbed of theoretical or empirical activity (Simpson, Farrell, Oriña, & Rothman, 2015).

References

Lewicki, R. J., Saunders, D. M., & Barry, B. (2010). Negotiation readings, exercises, and cases. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.

Simpson, J. A., Farrell, A. K., Oriña, M. M., & Rothman, A. J. (2015). Power and social influence in relationships. In M. Mikulincer, P. R. Shaver, J. A. Simpson, & J. F. Dovidio (Eds.), APA handbooks in psychology. APA handbook of personality and social psychology, Vol. 3. Interpersonal relations (pp. 393-420). Washington, DC, US: American Psychological.