Power is a broad concept. To define it, we will focus on its centres at many levels. Below you will see a diagram with four circles representing the centres of power. The middle circle will be our centre of local power. The next circle will be the centre of regional power, and the next will represent power at the national level. The outermost circle represents the power at the international level. Now consider who has power at each level. Try to complete the diagram yourself and use resources from the network. Don’t forget about the less obvious examples of people who exercise power indirectly. Power in this context is the possibility of exerting influence. Entities are not the only ones able to constitute power. Influential institutions, groups of people, or even individuals can exercise it. Some individuals also do not exercise power officially but have a lot of influence. Refer to your local community and your experience. Give examples and put them in the circles you consider appropriate.
After completing the task, think about the following:
The most common definition of power is the exercise of influence by an individual or an empowered group by shaping their behaviour or the behaviour of others to achieve goals. In this sense, power is influence. We can think about this influence at different levels (for example, school government). It is worth considering the specific influence of a given person/ function/ institution. That way, we can better understand the mechanism of the power itself. For convenience, we can think of this influence as shaping the behaviour of others (by commands or prohibitions and the will to imitate). Finally, it is worth looking at the objectives that the authorities want to achieve. These objectives will not always be obvious. It may also be the case that the authority pursues different objectives to those publicly declared/ set. The influence and objectives arising from a position (for example, a president, chairman of a board) may differ from the personal ones of said individual. Thus, we may observe that some people have significantly more power than their position implies. This is a very complex issue, but the most important is understanding who has the influence and what their goals are. That way, we can make the most of cooperation opportunities and avoid misunderstandings.