Oreoluwa Obiri

June 14, 2017

Engaged learning paper
UNIV 392

Power and Leadership

Power and leadership go hand in hand and it is important to look at how one
coincides with the other. In class we discussed five different forms of power in
leadership, the first is referent power which has to with power based on personal
power, this leader gains respect from their followers in a way that they are inspired
and want to be like them. The second is expert power, this is where power is gained
because of expertise in a certain area that the person posses. Then there is
legitimate power this has to do with power derived from a position that a person
holds for example, a judge or president. Next there is reward power which is power
based on what a person can give to another these rewards are not limited to
tangible things either. And lastly there is coercive power this form of power is
contrary to reward power in that it has to do with a threat of taking a way of
something in order to inspire productivity or action in those following. In the
Northouse readings it is shown that the study of leadership would be incomplete
without the study of power and how the definition of power, the capacity or
potential to influence, describes the function of the leader, followers, and the
situation. In my life I have upheld different leadership roles and with each different
type of role came a different type of power that I possessed in that role. I am from a
suburb of Detroit, Michigan and every now and then when I go back I have to direct
projects with the youth at my church in Detroit, which is a predominantly black and
Hispanic inhabited city. The youth tend to be at least two to three years younger
than me and the projects that we do are to build and support the people of Detroit
with this it is my job to Inspire teamwork and a strong sense of community within
the group. Often the students that I work with express admiration toward me
because I am somewhat an example of what they can be, in that I am a child of
immigrant parents, black, a female and pursuing higher education. I inspire hope
and reassurance to these students that they are not stuck where they are and with
hard work they can take the next step in using the resources and knowledge they
obtain to bring back their communities. The type of power displayed here with the
youth at my church is referent power, and I believe this power is relational and also
that it is developed through close relationships with all parties involved in order for
that inspirational or admirable influence to be present. Also within referent power
the situation has to be one that is inspiring change and this can go for other types of
power too like expert power or even legitimate power, but specifically referent
power because it is dependent on the leader and his/her relationship to those under
them.