Chapter 5 Sociology - Power
expert power
Perception that a person has superior knowledge in a particular area.
Feminist Theories
Point out that power can involve competence and empowerment, rather than just the domination of others.
Rational and nonrational tactics
Rational- appeal to logic and include bargaining and rational persuasion. Nonrational- include emotional appeals.
coercive power
The ability to punish- by witholding valued resources or by inflicting verbal or physical harm.
Reward power
The control one party has over valued resources that can be used to provide positive incentives.
Unilateral and bilateral tactics
Unilateral- Do not require cooperation to initiate; they include demands, orders, or disengagement. Bilateral- Involve give-and-take, as in negotiations and discussions.
Hegemony
a condition that exists when those in power have successfully spread their ideas - and marginalized alternative viewpoints- so that their perspectives and interests accepted widely as being universal and true.
class
a group of people who share a roughly similar economic position and lifestyle
intersectionality theory
a perspective that highlights the connections and interactions between various forms of inequality, especially race, class, and gender
privilege
a special advantage or benefit not enjoyed by all
standpoint theory
a theory that questions taken-for-granted assumptions about society by looking at it from multiple viewpoints, especially from the perspective of people in subordinate positions
legitimate power
authority that is voluntarily accepted by those who are affected
informational power
based on a person's use of facts, data, or other evidence to argue rationally or persuade
Hard and Soft tactics
hard- forceful, direct or harsh. People employing them use economic rewards and other tangible outcomes, and even threats. soft- focus on relationships. People employing make use of collaboration and friendship to achieve a claim.
Patriarchy
male domination through social institutions and cultural practices
social mobility
movement from one stratum of a stratification system to another
rational-legal authority
power that has legitimacy because it is based on established laws, rules, and procedures
traditional authority
power that has legitimacy because of compliance with well-established cultural practices
charismatic authority
power whose legitimacy is derived from the extraordinary personal characteristics of an individual leader, which inspire loyalty and devotion
stratification system
social structures and cultural norms that create and maintain inequality by ranking people into a hierarchy of groups that receive unequal resources
caste system
stratification based on various ascribed characteristics determined at birth.
class system
stratification determined by economic position, which results from a combination of individual achievement and family of birth
Power
the ability to bring about an intended outcome, even when opposed by others.
matrix of domination
the interlocking systems of oppression associated with race, class, and gender
life chances
the opportunities offered by a person's economic position
social closure
the process whereby a status group maximizes its own advantages by restricting access to rewards only to members of the group
power tactics
the specific strategies people use to influence others in everyday life
inequality
the unequal distribution of resources among groups of people
Reward
to encourage people's compliance by offering some compensation as a positive incentive
Coerce
to force people's compliance by threatening, intimidating, pressuring, or harming them.
Persuade
to obtain people's compliance by convincing them of the correctness of your position and goals.
Discrimination
treating others unequally based on their background or other personal characteristics.
Organization
-Bringing people together to identify common goals and work to achieve them.
Education
-The best-known approach to empowerment -Some philosophies focus on empowering students not transmitting facts. -To achieve their goal, people or groups must understand their situation, have a vision of what needs to be done, and obtain the training and skills they need to reach their goal.
Illegitimate power
A form of authority that relies on force or coercion to generate obedience.
conflict theories
Address power and economic inequality.
Empowerment
An increase in the capacity of people to bring about an intended outcome.
refrent power
Based on feelings of identification, affection, and respect for another person, even if that person does not seek influence over others.
Networking
Involves reaching outside your immediate circle of contacts to find allies.
Christian Clergy
Largely served the nobles but had some independence due to their claim of religious authority.
Commoners
Made up a bulk of the population. Illiterate and worked on land that they didn't own.
Nobility
Owned the vast tracts of land upon which the agricultural economy and their power was based.