Exercisers of Power & Morality

The topic to be examined in the proposed dissertation is that people who exercise power and control tend to be operating at the lowest stages of moral development. Specifically, the focus of the dissertation will be on low-level exercisers of power, political officials or activists who serve in positions on city councils, community boards, or organizational boards.

To undertake a comprehensive review of literature related to the thesis statement and the specific focus of the study requires an examination of several distinct topics. First, an overview of moral development theory is required. Secondly, a thorough analysis of different theories and models of power and control is required, augmented by an exploration of how political power itself is derived and functions. Third, any possible linkages in the literature between power and control use and level of moral development must be identified. Finally, literature that is specific to the target population - i.e., low-level exercisors of power in elected and/or appointed government or organizational positions - must be considered; however, an extensive review of several different computerized databases revealed no journal entries or other articles specifically focused on the purported linkage between stage of moral development, exercise of power and/or control, and leaders/officials at this particular level. Thus, pol

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tional power as sources of bias and inequality. The idea has been advanced that power-control theory itself is a patriarchal model and that situational control and interpersonal dominance are conditions that promote motives to stereotype leading to cognitive and judgment biases that cumulatively reinforce the status quo. According to Katz and Kahn (1966), influence within any authority structure must be role-relevant. Influence functions as a kind of psychological force while control involves the distinction between successful influence attempts and those that are unsuccessful. Power is distinguished from influence because it refers to potential acts and encapsulates the capacity to exert influence. Authority represents legitimate power that accrues to a person by virtue of his role, his position in an organized social structure, and the legitimacy of the role itself. Exercise of authority in any organizational or institutional setting must not be confused with authoritarianism. It is critical in the proposed study to differentiate between the legitimate exercise of power as an exercise of authority and power and control exercised solely to advance the agenda or the interests of an individual or a small group. Organi
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Elangovan Shapiro, Literature Review, Authority Brislin, Mead Dewey, Katz Kahn, Bill Clinton, Pluralist Model, Test DIT, Specifically Weber, Markson Stein, moral development, power control, exercise power, exercise power control, weber 1958, kohlberg 1981, stage moral development, stage moral, power-control theory, operating lowest, proposed dissertation, influence authority, lowest stage moral, operating lowest stage, individuals value human,
Approximate Word count = 2665
Approximate Pages = 11 (250 words per page)

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