The Crucible: A Power Play

MODULE TEXTS

French and Raven’s Five Forms of Power: Understanding Where Power

Comes From (Adapted), Mind Tools Team 1

Note: The central text for this module, The Crucible: A Play in Four Acts, is a full-length
drama.
orange skin help with ance

CSU Expository Reading and Writing Curriculum

French and Raven’s Five Forms of Power: Understanding Where Power
Comes From (Adapted)
MindTools.com

1 Think of a leader you’ve known who relied on his or her ability to discipline or reward
people to get things done. Then, remind yourself of a leader who was a renowned
expert in his field, or who you really admired for his integrity.
2 How did it feel to be around these leaders, and which one influenced you the most?
The way a leader behaves toward you and how effectively you respond as a result
can both depend on the source of her power. And her power need not come from
her official status or title.
3 Social psychologists John French and Bertram Raven studied this phenomenon
more than half a century ago. Despite its age, their research can still help us to
understand why some leaders influence us, how prepared we are to accept their
power, and—if you are a leader—how you can develop new power bases.
Understanding Power
4 In 1959, French and Raven described five bases of power:
1. Legitimate: This comes from the belief that a person has the formal right to
make demands, and to expect others to be compliant and obedient.
2. Reward: This results from one person’s ability to compensate another for
compliance.
3. Expert: This is based on a person’s high levels of skill and knowledge.
4. Referent: This is the result of a person’s perceived attractiveness, worthiness
and right to others’ respect.
5. Coercive: This comes from the belief that a person can punish others for
noncompliance.
Six years later, Raven added an extra power base:
6. Informational: This results from a person’s ability to control the information that
others need to accomplish something.
5 By understanding these different forms of power, you can learn to use the positive
ones to full effect, while avoiding the negative power bases that others can
instinctively rely on.
The Bases of Power
6 Let’s explore French and Raven’s bases of power in two groups—positional and
personal.
Positional Power Sources
Legitimate Power
7 A president, prime minister or monarch has legitimate power. So does a CEO, a
religious minister, or a fire chief. Electoral mandates, social hierarchies, cultural
norms, and organizational structure all provide the basis for legitimate power.

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8 This type of power, however, can be unpredictable and unstable. If a person loses
the title or position, their legitimate power can instantly disappear, because people
were influenced by the position they held rather than by the person in power.
9 Also, the scope of power is limited to situations that others believe the powerful
person has a right to control. If a fire chief tells people to stay away from a burning
building, for example, they’ll likely listen. But if he tries to make two people act more
courteously toward one another, they’ll likely ignore the instruction.
Reward Power
10 People in power are often able to give out rewards. Raises, promotions, desirable
assignments, training opportunities, and simple compliments – these are all
examples of rewards controlled by people “in power.” If others expect that the
powerful person will reward them for doing what they want, there’s a high probability
that they’ll do it.
11 The problem with this power base is that it may not be as strong as it first seems.
Teachers and parents rarely have unlimited access to things that students and/or
children want. Also, when the rewards are used up, or when the rewards don’t have
enough perceived value, their power weakens.
Coercive Power
12 This source of power is also problematic, and can be abused. What’s more, it can
cause dissatisfaction or resentment among the people it’s applied to.
13 Threats and punishment are common coercive tools. People in power use coercive
power when they imply or threaten that someone will be grounded, suspended, or
denied privileges. While their position may allow them to do take these actions, it
doesn’t mean that they have the will or the justification to do so. People in power
may sometimes need to punish others as a last resort but if they use coercive power
too much, people will respond poorly. (They might also risk being accused of
bullying.)
Informational Power
14 Having control over information that others need or want puts someone in a
powerful position. Having access to confidential material and knowing secrets are
examples of informational power.
15 In the modern economy, information is a particularly potent form of power. The
power derives not from the information itself but from having access to it, and from
being in a position to share, withhold, manipulate, distort, or conceal it. With this
type of power, someone can use information to help others, or as a weapon or a
bargaining tool against them.
Personal Power Sources
16 Relying on these positional forms of power alone can result in a cold, technocratic,
impoverished style of leadership. To be a true leader, a person needs a more robust
source of power than a title, an ability to reward or punish, or access to information.

The Crucible: A Power Play 2

 Expert Power
17 When a person has knowledge and skills that enable them to understand a
situation, suggest solutions, use solid judgment, and generally outperform others,
people will listen to them, trust them, and respect what they have to say. As a
subject matter expert, their ideas will have value, and others will look to them for
leadership in that area.
18 What’s more, they can expand their confidence, decisiveness and reputation for
rational thinking into other subjects and issues. This is a good way to build and
maintain expert power, and to improve leadership skills.
Referent Power
19 Referent power comes from one person liking and respecting another, and
identifying with her in some way. Celebrities have referent power, which is why they
can influence everything from what people buy to which politician they elect. In a
school, a person with referent power often makes everyone feel good, so he tends
to have a lot of influence.
20 Referent power can be a big responsibility, because you don’t necessarily have to
do anything to earn it. So, it can be abused quite easily. Someone who is likeable,
but who lacks integrity and honesty, may rise to power—and use that power to hurt
and alienate people as well as to gain personal advantage.
21 Relying on referent power alone is not a good strategy for a leader who wants
longevity and respect. When it is combined with expert power, however, it can help
a person to be very successful.
22 Anyone is capable of holding power and influencing others: you don’t need to have
an important job title or a big office. But if you recognize the different forms of
power, you can avoid being influenced by those who use the less positive ones—
and you can focus on developing expert and referent power for yourself. This will
help you to become an influential and effective leader.
23 Apply This to Your Life
1. Go through each power base and write down when and how you’ve used it.
2. Ask yourself if you used each power base appropriately. Consider the expected
and unexpected consequences and decide what you’ll do differently next time.
3. Think about the people who have power and influence over you. What sources
of power do they use? Do they use their power appropriately? Where necessary,
develop a strategy to reduce someone else’s illegitimate use of power over you.
4. When you feel powerless or overly influenced, think about how you could regain
your own power and control. After all, you’re never without power. Aim to be
more aware of the power you have and use it to get what you need—humanely.

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Module Attributions
Mind Tools Team. “French and Raven’s Five Forms of Power: Understanding Where
Power Comes From in the Workplace.” Leadership Training from MindTools.com.
Adapted from office leadership for student use,
www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newLDR_56.htm. Used with permission of the
Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
“Celebrating Arthur Miller at 100.” YouTube, uploaded by Westport Playhouse, 16 Sept.
2015, www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vt6_A_upfp8&feature=youtu.be. Accessed 25 Jan.
2019. Used by permission of Westport Country Playhouse.
Interview with Arthur Miller. 1971. CBC Archives.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxjhq4dr7QY. Accessed 25 Jan. 2019. Used by
permission of Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
McNamara, Robert. “The McCarthy Era.” ThoughtCo., 2 Jan. 2018,
www.thoughtco.com/mccarthy-eradefinition-4154577. Accessed 25 Jan. 2019. Used
with permission of ThoughtCo. and Dotdash.com.
“Microlabs Protocol.” National School Reform Faculty (NSRF), Bloomington, IN,
https://www.nsrfharmony.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/microlabs_0.pdf. Accessed 3
Aug. 2019. This link is included with permission from the National School Reform
Faculty (NSRF), Bloomington, IN.

1.My mom pays me when I score a goal in soccer and when I score I get 1 dollaar

2.REeferect because my t8 looks up to me so I told them a plan and they follow it and the plan was bad and we loses because of

my plan. The reward power works unexpected because people will do anything if it's the right money

3.THE power they use on me is reward and I don't think people use it approvingly because they they can can do anything if they

have money. THe stragtes that helped me not get convicted was to say no because they always add more money because they

really need that thing done

4.The way you can regain power is to stop and think about the pros and cons if you do this and you can think of a plan so they

stargies to control you fails.

CSU Expository Reading and Writing Curriculum 3