Political Power

A Political Power is a social power that enables political power agents to influence or control political outcomes, political behaviors, and political decisions within political systems.

• AKA: Political Influence, Political Authority, Political Capability.
• Context:
  • It can be held by a Politically Powerful Agent (such as a political elite).
  • It can influence Political Decision-Making Processes through political power mechanisms.
  • It can shape Political Outcomes via political power exercise.
  • It can control Political Resource Distribution within political power domains.
  • It can determine Political Agenda Setting through political power leverage.
  • ...
  • It can often derive from Institutional Positions within political power structures.
  • It can often manifest through Policy Implementation across political power jurisdictions.
  • It can often operate via Coalition Building among political power actors.
  • It can often function through Ideological Influence over political power constituencies.
  • ...
  • It can range from being a Soft Political Power to being a Hard Political Power, depending on its political power coercion level.
  • It can range from being a Formal Political Power to being an Informal Political Power, depending on its political power institutional basis.
  • It can range from being a Concentrated Political Power to being a Dispersed Political Power, depending on its political power distribution pattern.
  • ...
  • It can require Political Legitimacy for political power effectiveness.
  • It can face Political Resistance from political power opposition.
  • It can enable Social Actions while constraining political power alternatives.
  • It can operate through both Constraint Mechanisms and Enablement Mechanisms.
  • ...
• Examples:
  • Institutional Political Powers, such as:
    • Executive Political Power, held by presidents and prime ministers.
    • Legislative Political Power, exercised by parliaments and congresses.
    • Judicial Political Power, wielded by court systems.
    • Bureaucratic Political Power, maintained by administrative agencies.
  • Electoral Political Powers, such as:
    • Voting Power, exercised by political power electorates.
    • Campaign Finance Power, wielded by political donors.
    • Media Political Power, controlling political power narratives.
    • Endorsement Power, influencing political power support.
  • Social Political Powers, such as:
    • Elite Political Power, held by political power establishments.
    • Grassroots Political Power, mobilized by social movements.
    • Interest Group Power, organized by political power lobbies.
    • Public Opinion Power, expressed through political power sentiment.
  • Economic Political Powers, such as:
    • Corporate Political Power, exercised through political power lobbying.
    • Labor Union Power, mobilized through political power collective action.
    • Financial Sector Power, controlling political power capital flows.
    • Oligarchic Political Power, concentrated in political power wealth.
  • Coercive Political Powers, such as:
    • Military Political Power, based on political power force.
    • Police Political Power, maintaining political power order.
    • Intelligence Service Power, through political power information control.
    • Paramilitary Political Power, exercising political power violence.
  • Soft Political Powers, such as:
    • Cultural Political Power, shaping political power values.
    • Diplomatic Political Power, influencing through political power persuasion.
    • Moral Political Power, based on political power ethical authority.
    • Intellectual Political Power, through political power expertise.
  • Network Political Powers, such as:
    • Alliance Political Power, through political power coalitions.
    • Patronage Political Power, via political power client networks.
    • Family Political Power, within political power dynasties.
    • International Political Power, across political power borders.
  • ...
• Counter-Examples:
  • Economic Power, which operates through market mechanisms rather than political processes.
  • Social Status, which confers prestige without political authority.
  • Cultural Influence, which shapes values without political control.
  • Technical Expertise, which provides knowledge without political capability.
  • Moral Authority, which commands respect without political force.
• See: Social Setting, Social Science, Politics, Social Influence, Authority, Legitimacy (Political), Social Structure, Coercion, Soft Power, Poverty, Political Elite.

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References

2018

• (Wikipedia, 2018) ⇒ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_(social_and_political) Retrieved:2018-2-3.
  • In social science and politics, power is the ability to influence or outright control the behaviour of people. The term “authority” is often used for power perceived as legitimate by the social structure. Power can be seen as evil or unjust, but the exercise of power is accepted as endemic to humans as social beings. In business, power is often expressed as being "upward" or "downward". With downward power, a company's superior influences subordinates. When a company exerts upward power, it is the subordinates who influence the decisions of their leader or leaders. The use of power need not involve force or the threat of force (coercion). At one extreme, it closely resembles what an English-speaking person might term "influence", although some authors distinguish "influence" as a means by which power is used. One such example is soft power, as compared to hard power. Much of the recent sociological debate about power revolves around the issue of its means to enablein other words, power as a means to make social actions possible as much as it may constrain or prevent them. The philosopher Michel Foucault saw power as a structural expression of "a complex strategic situation in a given social setting” that requires both constraint and enablement.

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