AP Gov - Power, Authority, and Legitimacy

Legitimacy

When a large group of people believe that the government should have the authority that it does

Bureaucratic Theory

Appointed officials dominate the government through unelected jobs

Implicit Power

B does what A wants not because of anything that A directly says or does but because B senses that A wants something done or B for a variety of reasons wishes to do what he assumes A wants done.

Manifest Power

Based on an observable action by A that leads to B to do what A wants (police turning on a siren to pull someone over)

Power can be exercised as

Coercion through the use of force, Persuasion, Construction of incentives

Legitimacy by Habit

People become accustomed to it, it's a habit; the government retains legitimacy until a more compelling alternative comes along

legitimacy by historical, religious, or ethnic identity (HREI)

Especially true of new governments and new states

Authoritarian limits

Governments usually limit their authority with constitutions

Pluralist Theory

Groups complete and compromise to get the government to do what they want

Elite Theory

Groups or people who posses the most power dominate government (Marxist- control over the economic system equals control over the political system)

Majoritarian Theory

Leaders are forced to follow the will people because majority rules

Construction of Incentives

Make the alternatives so unattractive that only one reasonable option remains

Power can be based on

Money, affection, physical strength, legal status, possession of information, strong allies, determination, a family name, etc.

Legitimacy by Procedures

People have trust and faith in the procedures of government (elections, the legislative process, etc.) even if they don't agree with the results.

Legitimacy by Results

Provides to people what they most want: security, whether it be physical, from invasion, economic, etc. (people are willing to accept some bad side effects)

Four types of legitimacy

Results, Habit, HREI, Procedures

Power

The ability of one person to get another person to act in accordance with the first person's intentions

Coercion

The practice of persuading someone to do something by using force or threats

Authority

The right to use power based on a general agreement that a person/group has the right to issue certain orders and that those orders should be obeyed