Power & Authority

Question 1

5 types of power

Answer 1

1. Coersive
2. Reward
3. Leadership/Authority
4. Expert
5. Referent

Question 2

What is Coersive power?

Answer 2

the capability to punish. eg some managers try to publically humiliate or fire someone to show authority

Question 3

What is reward power?

Answer 3

the ability to reward someone so what they have done

Question 4

What is leadership/authority power?

Answer 4

when someone has an officially sanctioned position. it can be backed by social or cultural goals eg lecturer

Question 5

what is expert power?

Answer 5

power people give you because they think you have expert task knowledge

Question 6

what is referent power?

Answer 6

people grant you power as they look upto you/are loyal to you

Question 7

what are 3 ways of getting people to do something that they didnt want to do initially

Answer 7

1. persuation
2. use of power
3. moral disengagement

Question 8

what is moral disengagement?

Answer 8

self persuation to enable activities that cause discomfort

Question 9

what are the 6 principles of persuasion?

Answer 9

1. Liking
2. Reciprocity
3. Social Proof
4. Consistency
5. Authority
6. Scarcity

Question 10

what is liking?

Answer 10

people are more likely to comply with requests of people they know and like

Question 11

why does liking work?

Answer 11

we believe that people who like us would not take advantage of them.

Question 12

5 factors that influence liking

Answer 12

1. similarity
2. praise
3. association
4. physical attractgiveness
5. repeated contact/exposure

Question 13

what is reprocity?

Answer 13

people feel obliged to repay others

Question 14

why does reprocity work?

Answer 14

• creates a sense of obligation where the recepient feels guilty if they dont reciprocate
• gives us confidence that people will give us something in return

Question 15

2 reprocity techniques

Answer 15

• door in the face

- thats not all

Question 16

what is door in the face technique

Answer 16

make a ridiculous offer that will be rejected, then make a more reasonable offer that is likely to be accepted

Question 17

what is thats not all technique

Answer 17

make a ridiculous offer then give a bonus/disocunt on top

Question 18

what is social proof?

Answer 18

we follow in the lead of others

Question 19

why does social proof work?

Answer 19

• generally we make fewer mistakes by following others/paying attention to what they’re doing
• following in the lead of others is

Question 20

what is consistency?

Answer 20

when people allign themselves with clear commitments, they are more likely to follow through

Question 21

why does consistency work?

Answer 21

personal consistency is valued in society and if we don’t commit, our personal reputation is ruined.

Question 22

4 techniques based on consistency

Answer 22

1. foot in the door
2. low ball
3. labelling
4. legitimisation of paltry favours

Question 23

what is foot in the door?

Answer 23

you start with a small request so that they will eventually comply with a larger request

Question 24

what is labelling?

Answer 24

label someone in a way and then ask for a request that is based around this label eg you’re so helpful, can you help me clean

Question 25

what is low ball?

Answer 25

get someone to commit to a low cost request then reveal extra hidden costs

Question 26

what is legitimisation of paltry favours?

Answer 26

make a small amount of aid acceptable eg itll only take 5 mins of your time

Question 27

what is authority?

Answer 27

peeople defer to experts

Question 28

why does authoirty work?

Answer 28

we have been socialised to obey and respectauthority figures as they have knowledge, power and wisdom

Question 29

what is scarcity?

Answer 29

we want more of something there is less of

Question 30

why does scarcity work

Answer 30

things that are difficult to obtain are seen as higher in value. As we lose things we lose our freedom - people hate to lose freedom they already have

Question 31

what is cognitive dissonance?

Answer 31

a feeling of discomfort stemming from holding 2 contradictory ideas simultaneously. once we commit to something, if we change our mind, we either accept that what we were doing was wrong or we adjust our perceptions

Question 32

what is agentic shift?

Answer 32

a shift from autonomy to agency - we lose individuality and decision making power and accept that we are a tool. the power is given to a authoritive figure

Question 33

6 types of moral disengagement

Answer 33

1. Moral justification:
2. Euphemistic labelling:
3. Advantageous comparison
4. Distortion of consequences:
5. Diffusion of responsibility:
6. Displacement of responsibility:

Question 34

what is moral justification?

Answer 34

framing a negative activity as a service for the greater good.

Question 35

what is euphemistic labelling?

Answer 35

using pleasant language to describe the negative behaviours as a way to make it seem more benign.

Question 36

what is Advantageous comparison

Answer 36

comparing your behaviour to an even worse behaviour so it makes it seem that what
you are doing is fine.

Question 37

what is distortion of consequences

Answer 37

minimising, ignoring or distorting the seriousness of the effects of one’s actions

Question 38

what is diffusion of responsibility

Answer 38

attributing the blame for one’s actions to the system in which one is in.

Question 39

what is displacement of responsibility

Answer 39

attributing the responsibility of one’s actions to an authority figure, the agentic
shift.

Question 40

3 ways to prevent moral disengagement

Answer 40

1. clear atriculated value systems - clear rules so situation wont affect us
2. accountability partner that you trust - someone you can open upto that wont influence your decision
3. what if other people found out how would you feel?