Power, Authority and Decision Making - Research Paper Example

Power, Authority and Decision Making Abstract This paper articulates on the impact of power, authority and decision making in the world. It analysis the various kinds of power and authority that are in practise, giving their advantages and disadvantages. Moreover, it explains the impact in which power and authority is further used in decision making especially in organizations and business entities. Introduction Power Power is a word that has numerous definitions in relation to the use of the concept. The common definition of power is the ability to do something or act in a particular way. Of most important is that, in every definition there is an element that elaborates power as ‘a social actor being able to overcome resistance in achieving a desired objective’. Moreover, it is a force that is exercised from one actor to another a situation that enforces change on behaviour (Greene, 2000). Apparently, power may consist of anything that builds and maintains control of man over a fellow man. It tends to be defined as a force despite the fact that one with the power is the initiator or a responder. Thus, power is understood as a relational phenomenon in that persons exert power over others, and that power of an individual to do something constitutes a social relationship that is comparable to another person (Etzioni-Halevy, 1979). In light of this, power has been a crucial aspect of human civilization since time in memorial. In essence, power is physical, political or social. Additionally, in terms of business, power dynamics have the tendency to influence decisions and transactions of people heavily. Consequently, the definition of power could be challenging as it is understood and interpreted in various ways. Hence, power emanates from position or authority, which is capable of influencing people both positively and negatively. For this reason, the concept of power is placed in various categories for emphasis for simplicity and understanding (Wrong, 2002). Coercive Power Coercive power is the ability to use threat to make people do what one desires. In essence, it forces people to submit to one’s demand for fear of losing something. According to Wrong 2002, power in terms of coercion can take many forms. For instance, in the political arena modern state imprison those people who do not act in accordance to the legal mandates (Fairholm, 2009). In regard to history, majority of nations of the world joined in the boycott of Iraqi Oil in the hope of forcing the Iraqi government to honour the peace agreement that had been put forward in order to end the Gulf War of 1991. In the social arena, coercive power entails pushing someone into a behaviour one would not engage in. It is worth noting that most of the coercive power is associated with physical violence. Coercive power is most efficient, when the threat of violence or punishment associated to it, is sufficient enough to make the responder consent to the demand. Coercive power is advantageous in situations of impending danger, assuring internal cohesion, over and above, disputes that are of great value to the initiator. For instance, the European countries used extreme and often brutal, coercive power to launch their rule over Africa, and other regions such as Asia. Conversely, even thought the power may be impressive in specific situations, it might be useless in some situations especially when the responders to the power choose not to agree to the given threat (Wey 2009). Legitimate Power Legitimate power is derived from the authority of a person’s rate and position in a commanding chain. It is used in day to day life and its increases according to the responsibilities that are entitled to somebody. Never the less, legitimate power can be decreased in case the person who has the responsibility fails to fully meet them. The duration of this type of power is short lived as the person can only use it as he, or she holds a particular position. Additionally, the power given to this particular individual distinguishes him or her from the rest. Legitimate power is mostly practised in large organizations where there is a power structure and every leader has a higher authority to answer to. Hence, legitimate power is arguably one of the powers that have a relative concept due to its nature. In essence, it flows towards those who are ready to work with it, in the sense that an individual holding the power might exercise more of it through acceptance of additional responsibility from his seniors. For instance, the most common legitimate power is that of the armed forces of a country, which has well defined power structure that is strictly implemented. Consequently, legitimate power could be mishandled to cause illegitimate power. For instance, when military pulls off a coup and takes over the government, illegitimate power is exercised to its best (Winkler, 2010). Expert Power Expert power is a personalized ability that emanates from the skilfulness and proficiency owned by an individual, which is of high quality and is difficult to access. Moreover, individuals in such positions have the tendency of exercising power of knowledge to influence others. Thus, personalization of this type of power is easily enhanced over time as it has more credibility and respect. It is arguably one of the most common powers that play ground to a very large portion of human partnership especially in most companies where specialization of principles give room for large and complex enterprises to be commenced. Expert power becomes very useful once it is incorporated with other types of power. However, it can be ineffective if used by itself (Zajda & Geo-JaJa, 2010). Referent Power Referent power is the power that is associated with celebrities and firms’ stars all over the world as they have enormous following of fans, who like them, identify with them and follow them. Hence, they have a lasting influence in relation to making choices in both political and social life. In essence, referent power exists among the five bases of social power and is mostly exercised by leaders who have strong interpersonal relationship skills. Today referent power has become increasingly important in leadership as it is said to have more impact than other types of power. For instance, Bill Gates is an exhibit of Referent power due to his visionary leadership style, over and above, his own expertise that led to the invention of the Microsoft Company, which tops the computer software industry (Greene, 2000). Reward Power Reward power is a type of power that uses rewards, perks, better roles, monetary benefits among others to influence people, even though it is not influential on its own as popularly thought to be in presence of several players that are inclusive. The rewards can be financial or psychological. Of importance to note is that, some incentives could be workable for a specific group of people and not for others. In light of this, it is essential to understand the different kind of motivation aspects in relation to individuals. Reward power is particularly effective in the change of human behaviour, over and above, the increment of the persuasion ability. However, it is important to note that frequent use of rewards reduces power. For instance, when children are compelled to read in return of rewards they do so to a point where they are convinced that they can only read when they are rewarded. Hence, it is crucial that there must be a way in which reward are given to improve performance other that induce performance. One disadvantage of rewards is those individuals have different wants and needs where one reward might not be sufficient for all team members or employees. McCalley & Seperich, 2006 argues that, some employees may prefer to have monetary rewards while others want positions for reward and others just need recognition. Thus, the process of reward becomes tricky after all. Political Power Political power is described as a phenomenon in which persons in authority achieve the right to influence, and put pressure on the official policy that is meant to serve his interest well. This power is usually held by a group within a specific society that permit public resources to be administered, over and above, the implementation of policies for the society. This kind of power is acquired either as means of governmental directions or in opposition for a government (Wey 2009). Social Power Social power can be described as the level of influence that individual or organizations have among themselves and within the society as a whole. In essence, this kind of power results to being copied by others through the level of skills, knowledge and information that they might posses in their desired areas of expertise. This power is a common element in politics, economics, and other social relationships (Smith & Kornblum, 2012). Economic Power Economic power is defined as the ability to be in charge of over the type of economic decisions that are made especially because of the range of resources that are willingly available for use in the manipulation of the economy course. For a nation, it is easier to sway the economic direction in terms of how business materials are allocated in different approaches that are meant to give a desired outcome. For instance, purchasing power that might be held by a business or entity could be used as a means that triggers change in economic trends (Greene, 2000). In reference to this, power could be generally referred in different ways in relation to the context. None the less, the importance of power merely depends on the people who possess it. In an organization context, the dynamics of power must be cautiously managed in reference to the big role on the motivation, and employees’ engagement level. In addition, power describes the culture of an organization, over and above, the transaction of people in a given organization. In an organization that practises extreme hierarchal protocol, it becomes challenging to accommodate new and innovative ideas, as any attempt to make changes is disregarded. Conversely, in an organization that has a flat structure, people are encouraged to explore and make innovations out of numerous ideas that pertain to the organization. In light of this, there is a probability of bringing in new concepts and ideas to improve the growth of the organization that eventually leads to its expansion (McCalley & Seperich 2006). Authority The concept authority is defined as one of the most complex principles of social organization in the society today. Essentially, authority is the right or power to give instructions, make decisions, over and above, enforcing obedience over those who happen to be subordinates. According to Middleton et al 2007, important relationships between individuals or specific groups of people are absolutely based on the various types of authority. Once the attitude of member of society is understood in relation to authority and the types of authority that tend to fit them, then conclusion are easily made especially on the level of development of social relations that are given in a specific moment in history. Consequently, the concept authority is difficult to describe wholly as it incorporates both psychological and sociological content (Watt, 1982). The psychological context of authority denotes that authority is the relation between supremacy and subordination and is normally given a negative connotation, situation that is present in the development of moral awareness. On the other hand, sociologists argue that the government is equivalent to institutionalized power that represents any level of probability towards the fulfilment of someone’s will over others in spite of resistance. It is worth noting that authority solely rests on inner justification of dominion. Some scholars argue that authority is present in three distinct types that are used all over the world (Stephens & Armstrong, 2005). Traditional Authority Traditional authority is a legitimized sanctity of authority. Basically, the aptitude and right to rule is passed down through heredity means. Of importance to note is that, it does not change over time, is not in a position to facilitate social change, and irrational and inconsistent in terms of the status quo. Some scholars argue that traditional authority is embodied in feudalism or patrimonialism. In societies where the structures of the rule are patriarchal, servants are exclusively dependent upon the lord. Consequently, in feudalism, servants are said to be independent people. None the less, in both feudalism and patrimonialism the systems of authority do not change or evolve. Charismatic Authority According to Middleton et al 2007, charismatic authority is found in leaders whose mission and vision target to inspire others. Essentially, it is based upon the perception in which peoples’ extra ordinary characteristics are demonstrates as those that should be emulated by other people. Some scholars argue that charismatic leaders are those that head various social movements, over and above, being instilled supernatural or divine powers like religious prophets. Apparently, charismatic leaders are found globally, and their mandate is to head social aspects. For instance, Adolph Hitler, Bill Clinton and Mother Teresa, have continually acted like charismatic leaders by reaching out to the emotions of human beings, grasping their trust, respect and loyalty and influencing them to do what their leaders direct them to do (Winkler, 2010). One perfect example that is widely known is that Martin Luther King when he demonstrated his charisma at the time when people had little hope of making their lives better, he convinced them that passive resistance and standing their ground despite the humiliating treatment they endured for doing so was the only way for better life. Legal-Rational Authority Legal- rational authority denotes a formalistic belief in legal or natural context. In essence, this authority is given to a set of principles that are uniformed. Some scholars argue that, legal authority incorporates bureaucracy both political and economic. Besides, this form of authority is mostly practised in modern states, city governments and numerous voluntary associations (Watt, 1982). For instance, the president of United States Barrack Obama derives his authority from a rational- legal system of laws that are outlined in the formal document enshrined in the Constitution of America. Never the less, it is important to note that no structure in authority works entirely on bureaucratic. If anything, some positions are held by charismatic leaders. Conversely, non bureaucratic legal authority is likely to be found in organizations that practise rotational office holding like administration in parliamentary and committee and any related administrative bodies (Fairholm, 2009). Authority is rich and intricate, and its three types are surrounded by that clearly demonstrates their differences. First, traditional authority is impersonal as compared to charisma, and non rational as compared to legal-rational. Secondly, charismatic authority is dynamic as compared to traditional and non ratio alas compare to legal –rational. In terms of legal rational authority is dynamic as compared to traditional authority and impersonal as compared to charisma. In regard to this, maintaining a specific type of authority entirely depends on the ability of the authority system to keep holding the characters that make it unique to the rest while still rejecting it to characters that are more conducive to another type of authority (Sanders, 1999). In the present day, the three types of authority have been used to analyse various type of authorities that are practised all over the world. It is worth noting that the strongest of the three types of authority is charismatic authority. For instance, the former president of the United States of America, George Bush practised charisma during his tenure even if he used the little military experience to enable him handle the attack on Iraq. In fact, a large number of American were willing to simply follow his word without much consideration of whether he had positive or negative influence in relation to invasion of the United States. Other cases have also emerged in reference to the three types of authority (Wrong, 2002). Decision Making Decision making is a process that is used to make a choice among possible alternative. Principally, there are skills that are considered crucial in the decision making process such as the normative model of making a decision that gives an explanation of how decisions ought to be made. According to Bouyssou, et al 2009, decision making process is crucial in every organization as it determines both managerial and organizational actions. It refers to a route of execution, which is chosen from a set of alternatives to achieve desired results. Thus, it acts as a representative of a judgement that is well balanced and a commitment to action. It is worth noting that the first step towards management is ensuring that decisions are taken in regard to problems and situations. Of importance to note is that, decision making is a continuous process and an indispensible component of the management process. It is through the decision making that means and ends are linked together, to allow overall achievement through suitable follow up actions (Brunsson, 2007). For instance, whatever a manager does is incorporated in the process of decision making. Moreover, a manager makes a decision before acting or executing any plan of action. It is through this process that the ability of the manager is equally judged by the quality of decision that he or she makes. Consequently, action is not possible unless a firm decision to handle a business challenge is taken. Through this, it is evident that the process of decision making should be incorporated in planning, organising, directing, controlling, as well as, staffing. In situations such as planning, substitute plans are prepared to meet diverse possible situations (Cole, 2004). In relation to these plans, the best is used to handle the business environment an indication that decision making process is the core of the planning function. In a similar situation are decision expected to play part particularly in the management process. Simply, management efficiency depends on the quality of decision making, which involves selection of course of action that overdoes the rest in organization management. Several characteristics have been associated with decision making process. To begin with, choice one characteristic in decision making that gives alternative in courses of action. Thus, is it referred as a process of selecting one solution out of several that are available. For instance, those who make decision must consider business environment before coming up with a promising plan that is capable of dealing with the challenge or problem effectively. This simply means that decision making entails making a choice out of numerous alternatives. Needless to mention, ever challenge can be solved by use of various methods. Besides, the process of decision making is continuous and dynamic. In essence, it is never ending as managers must take decisions on all business process, policy and administrative matters (Pettigrew, 1973). Decision making process is both mental and intellectual. This means that the process is a human activity that requires knowledge, skills, experience and a considerable among of maturity. It is based on reliable information or feedback because good decisions are always based on reliable information. Additionally, all levels in an organization can easily be improved with the support of an effective and professional management. The aim of decision making process is to provide a way out to a particular problem or challenge in a business enterprise. It is further emphasized by achieving a target (Sanders, 1999). Apparently, decision making is not similar to problem solving, but it has its root to every business challenge. Although it requires a lot of time, decision making has numerous aspects that need careful consideration before the final decision are made, the process need to be communicated to all the concerned parties to enable suitable follow –up actions. In case decisions are not communicated to the concerned people, they remain in paper. This further translates to actions not being implemented. In general, decision making process is pervasive suggesting that managers working at all levels ought to make decisions on matters with their jurisdiction. It is arguably, one of the processes which must be responsible as any wrong decision becomes too expensive for a business entity to cover. Hence, the process should be treated with substantial delicate. Decision making processes should be appropriate, timely and rational. Rational decisions are always the best under accessible circumstances (Fairholm, 2009). The Overlap between Power, Authority and Decision Making All over the world, Power, authority and decision making are three essential tools that have been in almost all sectors be it political, social or economics (Smith & Kornblum, 2012). Moreover, every organization, company and or business entities require these three elements to enable them improve in activities that they are undertaking. Power and authority together and mostly used in decision making pertaining to different issues. In essence, authority is the legal ability and authorization to exercise power for enforcement while power is termed as the actual exercising of the authority. They both merge when decisions are made. For instance, the United States constitution does not mention education. This role is clearer in the federal government. It tends to describe power pertaining to public education to be an essential attribute of states sovereignty equivalent to that power that is necessary in tax affair or power that is necessary in providing general welfare of the states citizens (Forsyth et al 2011). Of importance to note is that even though, power is officially known to reside with the states, the major concerns in regard to efficiency and local involvement must be addressed through a delegation of authority from the legislative branch to the concerned department of a particular educational institution (Pankake & Murakami-Ramalho, 2012). Needless to mention that the state is capable of governing education facilities through states board, administer through education states departments, over and above, providing for an elected chief states officer. Present situation in the United States of America along with others denote the correlation in power, authority and decision making in various issues globally (Silova, 2010). Conclusion Power is a word that has numerous definitions in relation to the use of the concept. The common definition of power is the ability to do something or act in a particular way. Of most important is that in every definition there is an element that elaborates power as ‘a social actor being able to overcome resistance in achieving a desired objective.’ Coercive power is the ability to threaten people in doing your will. Legitimate power is derived from the authority of a person’s rate and position in a commanding chain. Expert power is a personalized ability that emanates from the skills and expertise possessed by an individual, that is of high quality ad is difficult to access. Referent power is the power that is associated with celebrities and firms’ stars all over the world as they have enormous following of fans, who like them, identify with them and follow them. Reward power is a type of power that uses rewards, perks, better roles, monetary benefits among others to influence people, even though it is not influential on its own as would be expected as there are several players that are inclusive. Political power is described as a phenomenon in which persons in authority achieve the right to influence, and put pressure on the official policy that is meant to serve his interest well. Social power can be described as the level of influence that individual or organizations have among themselves and within the society as a whole. Economic power is describes as the capability to take control in terms of economic decisions that are made especially due to the various resources that are easily accessible for use in the manipulation of the economy course. The concept authority is defined as one of the most complex principles of social organization in the society today. Traditional authority is a legitimized sanctity of authority. Charismatic authority is found in leaders whose mission and vision target to inspire others. Legal- rational authority denotes a formalistic belief in legal or natural context. Decision making is a process that is used to make choices among possible alternative. In essence, the decision making process is crucial in every organization as it determines both managerial and organizational actions. All over the world, Power, authority and decision making are three essential tools that have been in almost all sectors be it political, social or economics. 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