Directions: Examine And Describe The Five Sources Of Power And The Four Contingencies

Sources of PowerNameCourseTutor’s NameDateSources of PowerAccording to French, Raven, & Cartwright, (1959) there are five sources of social power. These include legitimate power, reward power, coercive power, referent power and expert power. In the organizational setting these sources of power determine leadership, social capital and leveraging capacity. Legitimate power is given by virtue of position according to the hierarchy of the organization. Organizations are organized in hierarchical order and those that are higher in the organization have higher power. Thus legitimate power is earned and wielded through legitimate means CITATION Rav17 \l 7177 (Raven, 2017). Reward power is derived from ability to provide incentives and compensation in an organization. This may include praise, commendation, pay raise, promotion and bonuses. Reward power makes people do things and can be highly motivating CITATION Rav17 \l 7177 (Raven, 2017). Coercive power is derived from ability to punish and is based on fear of unpleasant consequences. Coercive power leads to submission because of the potential threat of actions such as social isolation, dismissal and reprimands. In the organization setting both reward power and coercive power can be conferred