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Society portal. v. t. e. In political science, power is the social production of an effect that determines the capacities, actions, beliefs, or conduct of actors. [1] Power does not exclusively refer to the threat or use of force (coercion) by one actor against another, but may also be exerted through diffuse means (such as institutions).
Term Description Examples Autocracy: Autocracy is a system of government in which supreme power (social and political) is concentrated in the hands of one person or polity, whose decisions are subject to neither external legal restraints nor regularized mechanisms of popular control (except perhaps for the implicit threat of a coup d'état or mass insurrection).
Sociology. In social science, agency is the capacity of individuals to have the power and resources to fulfill their potential. For instance, structure consists of those factors of influence (such as social class, religion, gender, ethnicity, ability, customs, etc.) that determine or limit agents and their decisions. [1]
Social status is the relative level of social value a person is considered to possess. [1][2] Such social value includes respect, honor, assumed competence, and deference. [3] On one hand, social scientists view status as a "reward" for group members who treat others well and take initiative. [4] This is one explanation for its apparent cross ...
See Separation of duties for a description of the Executive, Judicial, and Legislative functions as they are generally understood today. Titles that bestow functional authority with minimal executive, judicial, or legislative power are listed as Administrative. Titles that bestow political or spiritual authority with minimal executive, judicial ...
Abuse of power. Abuse of power or abuse of authority, in the form of "malfeasance in office" or "official abuse of power", is the commission of an unlawful act, done in an official capacity, which affects the performance of official duties. Malfeasance in office is often a just cause for removal of an elected official by statute or recall election.
Authority is commonly understood as the legitimate power of a person or group over other people. [1] In a civil state, authority is practiced by the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government. [2] The term authority has many nuances and distinctions within various academic fields ranging from sociology to political science.
In political and sociological theory, the elite (French: élite, from Latin: eligere, to select or to sort out) are a small group of powerful people who hold a disproportionate amount of wealth, privilege, political power, or skill in a group. Defined by the Cambridge Dictionary, the "elite" are "the richest, most powerful, best-educated, or ...