M. Koslowsky et J. Schwarzwald, THE USE OF POWER TACTICS TO GAIN COMPLIANCE - TESTING ASPECTS OF RAVEN (1988) THEORY IN CONFLICTUAL SITUATIONS, Social behavior and personality, 21(2), 1993, pp. 135-143
French and Raven's sixfold taxonomy has been used widely to examine so
cial influence processes. A recent elaboration by Raven (1988a) propos
es that the use of power tactics is situationally contingent, dependin
g on availability of alternatives. The present study examined the patt
ern of power tactic preferences as a function of setting and status. A
total of 89 subjects were given scenarios describing an attempt to in
fluence another party. The scenario differed in setting (work vs. scho
ol) and status level of the influencing agent (manager or teacher vs.
employee or student). Factor analysis indicated that several tactics (
reward, coercion, and expertise) are unique whereas other tactics over
lap. Findings indicated that higher status individuals as compared to
lower status counterparts were perceived as using a greater variety of
power tactics to gain compliance in conflict situations. In addition,
power tactic patterns were found to be situationally contingent. The
findings were discussed in terms of the original sixfold approach and
its possible implications for management.