by Sam Cook a former student
Stephen Lukes’ perspective on power
Though Weber’s definition is accepted by many sociologists as their starting point in understanding power in society, many sociologists thought it was too narrow a definition. In 1974 Stephen Lukes’ put forward his ‘radical’ view of power.
According to Stephen Lukes there are three faces of power rather than one which is explained in accessible detail when applied to the family.
1.THE FIRST FACE OF POWER: SUCCESS IN DECISION MAKING
- Pluralists have adopted this approach. Pluralist theories argue that power can be seen from the outcome of a decision making process. Whoever gets their way has all the power!
- Example, A has power over B to the extent that he can get B to do something that B would not otherwise do. This is evident in the clip below:
2.THE SECOND FACE OF POWER: MANAGING THE AGENDA
- Critics of…
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