Social Power and Pottsboro High School - Essay Example

Social Power and Pottsboro High School Social power may be defined as "the capa to exertinfluence over others." (Larison). French and Raven have identified five types of power exhibited by people interacting socially. They are: 1) reward, 2) coercive, 3) referent, 4) legitimate and 5) expert. As a school is a social institution, we may expect to see these power types in operation in the school particularly in its administration. This paper will confirm this expectation through the analysis of Pottsboro High School. French and Raven’s idea of social influence and power is that “social influence and power is limited to influence on the person, P, produced by a social agent, O, where O can be either another person, a role, a norm, a group of a part of a group.  We do not consider social influence exerted on a group.” (French and Raven 151)  This means that all groups are interdependent, which means the group depends on its members in order to function.  This implies that a change in one may produce a change in others.  To put it into more academic perspective, Social Power is the amount of powers that O is capable of because of some more or less enduring relation to P.  This defines the range of power as the set of all systems within which a person has power of strength greater than zero.  The example that French and Raven gave us was, “A husband may have a broad range of power over his wife, but a narrow range of power over his employer. (French and Raven 153) The basis of power is the relationship between O and P.  Normally, the relationship between O and P will have many different variables; usually power is not limited to one source.  Five bases of power, which we have discussed earlier, are reward power, which is to think that one has the ability to mediate rewards for him.  The second is coercive power, which is based on the ability for one to punish him.  Legitimate power, which states that one person, has a legitimate right to prescribe behavior for him.  The fourth is referent power, which is based on identification with the group or leader.  And the last is expert power, which is to feel that someone has special knowledge or expertise, which he can benefit from.  Reward power increases with the magnitude of the reward, the bigger and better the award, the more that P perceives O can mediate for him.  Reward power depends on the ability of the giver to administer positive feedback and remove negative outcomes and responses. This type of power is displayed on all levels of school’s social structure. Since teachers in Pottsboro (as in all other schools) are the one giving grades, they have the power to reward outstanding grades for those excellent academic performers. They influence student behavior because the students know that if they exert effort in studying, they will soon find their names in the honor’s list. I have seen this influence many times in my teaching career. For example, I announced that whoever tops the exam I give would be given a medal and a sumptuous snack and would be the school’s representative for an interschool competition. The result is that I would get higher than usual results in the examination. The administrative part of the school influences teachers does their best by providing citations such as ‘Most Outstanding Teacher for the Academic Year’ that sometimes would come with monetary rewards. However, these two rewards are secondary only to the ultimate reward of gaining a higher position in the school’s organizational structure. As with all other schools, with politics set aside, excellent performance would usually be compensated by rising in the ranks. The same also goes true for the school’s administrative staff which is influenced ultimately be the Board of Directors. The prospect of gaining a higher position is a prime motivator for many teachers and administrative staff including myself. Coercive Power is the same as reward power, only it uses negative cohesion instead of positive, it uses punishment instead of rewards.  French and Raven say that “the strength of coercive power depends on the magnitude of the negative valence of the threatened punishment multiplied by the perceived probability that P can avoid the punishment by conformity, i.e., the probability of punishment for nonconformity minus the probability of punishment for conformity.” (French and Raven, 157)  The problems in Pottsboro High are the following: 3 or 4 drug incidents a year, 3 or 4 fights a year, tardiness to class, minor disruptions in class, not putting trays up after lunch, theft in the PE dressing rooms & skipping schools. These violations and incidents are addressed by codified penalties. For example, fights are penalized by suspension and consultation with the parents. Penalties for theft can be as severe as expulsion form the school. Who makes these rules? They are no other than the administrative staff with consultation from the teachers, parents of the student and state authorities. In my professional career, I have seen this power too many times. I, for one, have utilized it to avoid disruptions in class. For example, I deal with noisy students by telling them they would be forced to stay after class. In all cases, I have seen them perform better. However, some ‘threats’ are not effective. For example, there was one student who I have been warning to stop being late. No matter how many times I’ve warned the student and expressed my intent to send him to the Disciplinary Office, the student still comes to school late. The administrative staff influences the teachers, maintenance personnel and even its members by instituting many punishments for poor performance and professional conduct. I, for one, am not only influenced by the prospect of a reward but also of the fear of unemployment. Legitimate power is the most complex of the different types, legitimate power is the valence in a region, which is induced by some internalized norm or value.  It stems from internalized values in one which indicates that another has a legitimate right to influence one who is obligated to accept this influence. The main basis for this power is the cultural values that one individual has over another. The teacher in the teacher-student relationship also utilizes this type of power. This would be the cases where ‘you would do this because I said so’. There were cases where students would sometimes justify their behavior by citing their right to self-determination and questioning the school’s right to administer punishments. This was dealt by making use of legitimate power citing that since they are under our custody and by virtue that we are their teachers, we have the authority to implement disciplinary measures which they have known earlier on.    Referent Power is a feeling of oneness of one with another or the desire to want this identity.  If someone is attracted to something about someone else, that person will want to become closely associated with that person.  This power can best be summed up by a ‘role model’ where a person influences another because of his abilities. When I asked my students to who they would like to emulate, some of them would talk about another student (during personal talks) who has excelled in school sports and academics. I have been personally influenced by my principal due to his outstanding and praiseworthy dedication to the profession. Expert Power is the strength that knowledge and perception which one person attributes to another within a given area.  Expert power results in primary social influence on one’s cognitive structure and probably not on other types of systems. This is the case of ‘Teacher knows best’ or somebody knows better so I have to follow him. In many decisions of the school regarding their policies, all sides will air their positions but in many cases, all will agree to the suggestions of a person in authority such as the Guidance Head for disciplinary measures and the Academic head for changes in educational format. Interestingly, many students whom I have given advice regarding their academics or personal life have instituted my suggestions. I believe that they see me as an expert regarding this being a grown up and a teacher. From the discussion, we see that how the types of power operate in Pottsboro High School. They all can have major affects on how people cooperate in a group.  The different types of power will work for almost everyone; different types may work better in different situations, or with different people.  This implies that a mix usage should sometimes be necessary. The five are very normal in interactions of the school and they happen even without individuals meaning to.  It is human nature for all of these sources of power to work in coercing people into different behaviors.  Reference: Hoy, Wayne K. Hoy & Cecil G. Miskel. Educational Administration. Read More