Power, Control, and Influence
I've been thinking a good bit about power vs. control and the relationship of influence to both of them. I'd like to think that Power doesn't necessarily entail control of other but can in fact being a combination of the control of self and the influence of other, if you catch my meaning.
For example, The Godfather excercised power and control over a great many people, and in fact also excuded influence. But say a pastor or a teacher has power but in a different fashion: he/she exerts power by influence.
I suppose the differentiating factor is the element of necessary action on the part of the object upon which power is being enacted upon. One who is exerting power-by-influence upon someone is not guaranteed a particular response on the part of the other, but someone who is enacting power-by-control is, in fact, guaranteed a particular response.
Then there is the element of power by self-control, that is, ones inate ability to act and deliver an intended thing.
I'd be interested in hearing your feedback. This all comes out of a couple of folks I know thinking I'm a type 8 on the enneagram scale. I don't necessarily disagree with this, and concerns of ever sticking someone into a cut and dry category aside, some of things I don't think quite fight er, me.
Wow, new levels of solipsism. A blog post about me asking for a discussion about me.
Anyways, on that page linked to above they have it broken down into a type 8 person at their best, average, and worst. I can see how some of the average and worst things are, well, me at my worst, so I suppose avoiding those things are like avoiding any sinful tendencies. The one thing I don't get is the idea of "control" or "power" as a fundamental driving force. Hence the above paragraphs. I suppose I want control in the self-control and influences sense mentioned above. What I can't imagine is myself desiring brainless lackies who just do what I tell them to do. That's a bit foreign to me. But I suppose alot of it is perception, and I'm fairly certain there are some folks out there who see me as a power-hungry control freak who simply wants to dominate everyone and everything.
But I suppose I should take heart that these are merely "tendencies" and not absolutes about a person, and that there are sanctified versions of it all.
| By Josiah Roe | 03:13 PM
Comments
Cool thoughts! You should check out some game theory. My dissertation is partly an application of bargaining model in which one spouse has more "power" than another and thus "controls" more of the resources. I'm mainly trying to use that idea to model the adoption of condoms during sex (or rather, the failure to adopt condoms during sex), but that idea more generally has a long history in bargaining models within game theory.
Posted by: scott cunningham at November 30, 2004 03:41 PM
Interesting -it says you are hard-hearted and potentially violent and immoral. I was a Type Four - accurate up to a tee, especially the unhealthy stuff.
Posted by: scott cunningham at November 30, 2004 03:47 PM
I'm probably way out of my league with where this is going, but I'd definitely put you at number 8. And this isn't a bad thing. I wouldn't say you want control at any cost. Your post sounds like you only really touch on type 8 control (with the whole power and influence thing), but it seems to me that "control" is the driving force for every personality type. They just go about it in different ways.
Maybe its just a little more obvious with number 8 because the control is over other people. Just take a few examples from the list. Type 1 is control over themselves. Type 2 is control by wanted to feel useful. Type 3 is control through success.
Am I making any sense or am I like, way off base to where you were going with this?
Posted by: tanderson at November 30, 2004 07:15 PM
wait... so you don't want "brainless lackies who just do what you tell them to do?" what's that thing you're always saying about bucket-holders?...
Posted by: andy at November 30, 2004 07:30 PM
I think they mean control as in "being able to determine the outcome of events" not as in "being able to boss people around". Sometimes the former entails the latter, but the perspective I think they're aiming at has more to do with not being helpless than being domineering.
I find any discussion of power/control/influence that doesn't include the concept of authority to be pretty confusing. Authority is the first thing I think of when the subject comes up, and somehow I don't really think that's what the Enneagram people are talking about. Which suggests, to me at least, that hierarchical power structures aren't really in view.
Posted by: ryan at November 30, 2004 07:33 PM
Power is temporary, contol is an illusion, but influence can last forever.
Posted by: Alice at December 1, 2004 12:16 PM
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