Referent power Reward power Shared visioning Stakeholders Vision
CHAPTER 7 • UNDERSTANDING POWER AND POLITICS 87
Power Defined Power is the potential ability to influence others (Hersey, 2011). Power is involved in every human encounter, whether you recognize it or not. Power can be symmetrical when two parties have equal and reciprocal power, or it may be asymmetrical with one person or group having more control than another (Mason, Leavitt, & Chaffee, 2011). Power can be exclusive to one party or may be shared among many people or groups. To acquire power, maintain it effectively, and use it skillfully, nurses must be aware of the sources and types of power that they will use to influence and transform patient care.
Power and Leadership Real power—principle-centered power—is based on honor, respect, loyalty, and commitment. Principle-centered power is a model congruent with nursing’s values. It is based on respect, honor, loyalty, and commitment. Originally conceived by Stephen Covey (1991), the model is increasingly used by leaders in many fields (Ikeda, 2009). Power sharing evolves naturally when power is centered on one’s values and principles. In fact, the notion that power is something to be shared seems to contradict the usual belief that power is something to be amassed, protected, and used for one’s own purposes.
Leadership power comes from the ability to sustain proactive influence, because followers trust and respect the leader to do the right thing for the right reason. As leaders in health care, nurses must understand and select behaviors that activate principle-centered leadership:
● Get to know people. Understanding what other people want is not always simple. ● Be open. Keep others informed. Trust, honor, and respect spread just as equally as fear,
suspicion, and deceit. ● Know your values and visions. The power to define your goals is the power to choose. ● Sharpen your interpersonal competence. Actively listen to others and learn to express your
ideas well. ● Use your power to enable others. Be attentive to the dynamics of power and pay attention
to ground rules, such as encouraging dissenting voices and respecting disagreement. ● Enlarge your sphere of influence and connectedness. Power sometimes grows out of
someone else’s need.
Power: How Managers and Leaders Get Things Done Classically, managers relied on authority to rouse employees to perform tasks and accomplish goals. In contemporary health care organizations, managers use persuasion, enticement, and inspiration to mobilize the energy and talent of a work group and to overcome resistance to change.
A leader’s use of power alters attitudes and behavior by addressing individual needs and motivations. There are seven generally accepted types of interpersonal power used in organizations to influence others (Hersey, 2011):
1. Reward power is based on the inducements the manager can offer group members in exchange for cooperation and contributions that advance the manager’s objectives. The degree of compliance depends on how much the follower values the expected benefits. For example, a nurse manager may grant paid educational leave as a way of rewarding a staff nurse who agreed to work overtime. Reward power often is used in relation to a manager’s formal job responsibilities.
2. Coercive power is based on the penalties a manager might impose on an individual or a group. Motivation to comply is based on fear of punishment (coercive power) or withholding of rewards. For example, the nurse manager might make undesirable job assignments, mete out