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Organizational behavior studies interactions within an organization, including the role of power. Personal power is based on an individual’s charisma, while legitimate power comes from their position. Expert power is based on superior knowledge or skills.
Organizational behavior refers to the purposeful study of the various interactions that occur within a given organizational context, in relation to its applicability to a larger set of standards that may apply to those structures. The role of power in organizational behavior is only one of many factors that influence the structure of organizational behavior. In applying power in organizational behavior, it can be personal, legitimate, or expert.
When studying the role of power in organizational behavior, personal power is clearly delineated from other types of power because it has its own characteristics. This type of power is attributed to the individual and does not come from any other source. It may be the result of the individual’s charisma or personality, and its role in organizational behavior is the extent to which other individuals within the establishment respond to this power. Such a leader is able to have a more personal and loyal relationship with subordinates due to the fact that the subordinates are responding to the leader’s nature as a person and not because of any other considerations. The danger of this kind of power is the fact that any change that occurs within the organization where a dynamic leader is replaced could be met with opposition and resentment from subordinates who may not have the same level of affinity and loyalty to the substitute leader.
Another aspect of studying the role of power in organizational behavior is the study of legitimate power within the organization. Legitimate power refers to the type of power that is acquired in the position the leader is occupying and, through transference, to the leader. This kind of power has nothing to do with the personality of the leader who may lack outstanding leadership qualities. For example, when someone is named CEO of a company, employees may disagree with the choice, but will still respect the manager’s decisions based on established beliefs about the power inherent in the CEO position.
Power in organizational behavior can also refer to the power of an expert, which is based only on the superior knowledge or skills of the person occupying a position. For example, if a computer company executive was appointed to that position because of his extensive knowledge of computers, the power the manger has over other workers will be derived from the perceived superiority of the manager’s skills. When it becomes obvious that another individual in the organization has a superior skill set, the manager may not be able to use that knowledge as leverage to command compliance from subordinates.
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