Political Power

Dr. Ayman el-dessouki

 Politics as power
• Power is the focus of political science.
• What is power?
– Power is the ability to get others do what it would not
otherwise have done.
• It is the ability to get the outcomes you want (the
desired outcomes).
– Power includes Authority and influence.
– Power has three frms: hard power, soft power and
sharp power.
 Why do some people hold power
over others?
• Communities based on love and sharing are not sustained,
and will transform into conventional ones, where leaders
control followers.
• Political power is built in the human nature
• Therefore, why do some people hold power over others?
• Explanation of power:
– Different biological, psychological, cultural, rational,
and irrational explanations.
– Some understand power as a composite
 Biological Explanation
Main argument:
• Forming a political system and obeying is innate to human
nature.
• Man is a political or social animal.
• People live in herds and array themselves into leaders and
followers like animals
• Forming political systems is passed with one’s genes
Evaluation:
• Simple; but raises questions.
• E.G. Why do political groups fall apart or disobey
authority?
 Psychological Explanation
Main argument:
– Similar to biological in terms of obedience.
• What makes human society possible is the obedience to
authority and group think.
• People have deep needs to fit into groups and their norms in
a positive and negative sense.
• People surrender actions to authority figure and are
naturally conformist (see things the group’s way)
 Psychological Explanation
Basis:
– Psychological explanations of power were supported by
empirical studies such as Milgram study, and studies of
groupthink (mistakes and ignoring doubters).
– Milgram study
• Administration of shocks to a victim
• Administrators surrendered actions to authority figure.
– "Groupthink" and obedience to authority
 Cultural Explanation
• Main argument:
– Behaviour is learned and differences in behavior are
cultural
• How?
– Cooperative peaceful societies raise up their children
that way.
– Political communities are formed and sustained on the
basis of cultural norms.
 Cultural explanation
• Values and norms are transmitted through the family,
school, church and mosque, and media.
• Political science developed a sub-field called political
culture.
• Political culture is formed by many long-term factors:
religion, child rearing, land tenure, economic development.
• Trouble happens when the political system gets out of
touch with such cultural system (Iran, Republicans).
• Economic and political development depend heavily on
culture.
Criticism of Cultural Explanation

• Cause for optimism:

Holds that bad behavior can be unlearned and society
improved, though slow change.
Criticism: Difficulty
– From where does culture come?
– If all behavior is cultural, political systems should all
be different based on different cultures.
• Why there are similarities despite different cultures?
• Why politicians tend to be corrupt everywhere
despite different culture?
 Rational explanation
• Previous explanations downplay the human reason.
• Main argument:
– People know what they want; have good reasons for
what they do.
– "Civil society" better than anarchy
• Classical theorists:
– People form civil society because powers of human
reason tell them that it is better than anarchy.
– Government safeguards life and property and if it
becomes abusive people have the right to dissolve it
and start a new one.
 Rational explanation
• Systems based on the idea of human reason have higher
chances of justice and are more humane.
– How can we explain a change of mind?
• People make judgments all the time.
 Irrational explanation
• Main argument:
• People are emotional, dominated by myths and symbols.
• Politics is the manipulation of symbols.
• A charismatic leader controls the crowds.
• What people see as rational is a myth:
– Keep feeding people myths and they will be under control
(terrorists)
• This might be true but a system where the leader believes in such an
explanation is dangerous and doomed to destruction.
• Irrationalism may exist in the most advanced countries.
 Power as a composite
• All explanations hold elements of truth at different times
and situations.
• Complex mixture of factors are present in any political
system
• Factors’ weight and importance differ from time to time and
depending on the situation.
• Factors blend together and might lead to each other
• Power is not finite or measurable and is not concrete
(seizing power!)
 Are politics and power equal?
• Two answers:
1- Politics is a combination of goals and policies plus power
to achieve them. Power is a prime ingredient even if it is the
power of love.

2- Politics is a gigantic game in which power is the goal.

Politics is about struggle over power.
Such answer is dangerous for an absolute obsession of power
with no regard to other purposes will lead to tyranny and
corruption and might destroy the system.