1 Concepts and Theories of Political Power Free Online FlashCards

What is political power?

Political power is the relational capacity to shape decisions, actions, rules, or social conditions in a political community.

How does Robert Dahl define power?

A has power over B to the extent that A can get B to do something B would not otherwise do.

How does influence differ from power?

Influence is the broader capacity to affect another’s beliefs, preferences, or conduct. Power is often treated as a form of influence that reliably shapes outcomes or available choices.

What is the second face of power?

They argued that power also operates when influential actors keep potentially controversial issues off the public agenda, preventing demands from being debated.

What does the first dimension of Lukes’s account examine?

The first dimension concerns power over observable decisions and conflicts.

What are Weber’s traditional and charismatic authority?

Traditional authority rests on established custom; charismatic authority rests on devotion to a leader regarded as exceptional.

What does an institutional approach to power examine?

Institutional approaches examine how laws, procedures, and organizations shape political choices, even without a single actor issuing a direct command.

How can people create collective power?

Collective power emphasizes people’s capacity to act by organizing, cooperating, and coordinating with others, rather than relying only on power over them.

What distinguishes coercion from power generally?

Coercion secures compliance through a threat or imposition of costs. It is one possible means of exercising power, not a synonym for power as a whole.

What makes power authority?

Authority is power regarded as a legitimate right to issue directives or make decisions. People may comply because they recognize an office, procedure, or tradition as rightful.

What is legitimacy, and what does it not establish?

Legitimacy is the belief or justification that a rule, institution, or exercise of power is rightful. Acceptance alone does not prove that a decision is just.

What does the second dimension of Lukes’s account examine?

The second dimension concerns power over the agenda, including the ability to suppress or limit conflict.