Political power (
imperium in Latin) is a type of
power held by a person or group in a
society. There are many ways to hold such power. Officially, political power is held by the holders of
sovereignty. Political powers are not limited to heads of states, however, and the extent to which a person or group holds such power is related to the amount of
societal influence they can wield, formally or informally. In many cases this influence is not contained within a single state and it refers to
international power.
Political scientists have frequently defined power as "the ability to influence the behaviour of others" with or without resistance.
For analytical reasons, I.C. MacMillan
[1] separates the concepts
power and influence
Separation of powers
Charles de Secondat, baron de Montesquieu claimed that without following a principle of containing and balancing
legislative,
executive and
judiciary powers, there is no freedom and no protection against abuse of power. Separation of power must be in such grade, that any of the branches can operate without excessive limitations from the others; but interdependecy between them must also be in such grade, that one single branch cannot rule out the other's decisions. This is the
separation of powers principle.
Division of Power
A similar concept, termed Division of Power, also consists of differentiated legislative, executive, and judicial powers. However, while Separation of Power prohibits one branch from interfering with another, Division of Power permits such interference. For example, in
Indonesia, the President (who wields executive power) can introduce a new bill, but the
People's Consultative Assembly (holding legislative power) chooses to either legalize or reject the bill.
Power projection
Power projection (or
force projection) is a term used in
military and
political science to refer to the capacity of a
state to implement policy by means of force, or the threat thereof, in an area distant from its own territory. The
United States Department of Defense, in its publication
J1-02: Department of Defense Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms, further defines power projection as
The ability of a nation to apply all or some of its elements of national power - political, economic, informational, or military - to rapidly and effectively deploy and sustain forces in and from multiple dispersed locations to respond to crises, to contribute to deterrence, and to enhance regional stability. [1]
This ability is a crucial element of a state's
power in
international relations. Any state able to direct its military forces outside the limited bounds of its territory might be said to have
some level of power projection capability, but the term itself is used most frequently in reference to militaries with a worldwide reach (or at least significantly broader than a state's immediate area). Even states with sizable
hard power assets (such as a large
standing army) may only be able to exert limited
regional influence so long as they lack the means of effectively projecting their power on a global scale. Generally, only a select few states are able to overcome the
logistical difficulties inherent in the
deployment and direction of a modern, mechanized military force.
While traditional measures of power projection typically focus on
hard power assets (tanks, soldiers, aircraft, naval vessels, etc.), the developing theory of
soft power notes that power projection does not necessarily have to involve the active use of military forces in
combat. Assets for power projection can often serve dual uses, as the deployment of various countries' militaries during the
humanitarian response to the 2004
Indian Ocean earthquake illustrates. The ability of a state to project its forces into an area may serve as an effective diplomatic lever, influencing the decision-making process and acting as a potential
deterrent on other states' behavior.
Political Science Perspectives
Within normative political analysis, there are also various levels of power as described by academics that add depth into the understanding of the notion of power and its political implications.
Robert Dahl, a prominent American political scientist, first ascribed to political power the trait of decision-making as the source and main indicator of power. Later, two other political scientists, Peter Bachrach and Morton Baratz, decided that simply ascribing decision-making as the basis of power was too simplistic and they added what they termed a 2nd dimension of power, agenda-setting by elites who worked in the backrooms and away from public scrutiny in order to exert their power upon society. Lastly, British academic
Steven Lukes added a 3rd dimension of power, preference-shaping, which he claimed was another important aspect of normative power in politics which entails theoretical views similar to notions of
cultural hegemony. These 3 dimensions of power are today often considered defining aspects of political power by political researchers.
A radical alternative view of the source of political power follows the formula: information plus authority permits the exercise of power. Political power is intimately related to information. Sir Francis Bacon's statement: "Nam et ipsa
scientia potentia est" for knowledge itself is power, assumed authority as given. Many will know that unless someone with authority heeds, there is no political power. The
kingmaker is not the king.
It is said democracy is the best method of informing those entrusted with authority. They are best able to use authority without ignorance to maximize political power. Those who exercise authority in ignorance are not powerful, because they do not realize their intentions and have little control over the effects of using their authority.
Post-modernism has debated over how to define political power. Perhaps, the best known definition comes from the late
Michel Foucault, whose work in
Discipline and Punish (and other writings) conveys a view of power that is organic within society. This view holds that political power is more subtle and is part of a series of societal controls and 'normalizing' influences through historical institutions and definitions of normal vs. abnormal. Foucault once characterized power as "an action over actions" (
une action sur des actions), arguing that power was essentially
a relation between several dots, in continuous transformation as in
Friedrich Nietzsche's philosophy. His view of power lent credence to the view that power in human society was part of a training process in which everyone, from a
prime minister to a homeless person, played their role within the power structure of society.
Jürgen Habermas opposed himself to Foucault's conception of
discourse as a battlefield for power relations, arguing that it should be possible to achieve
consensus on the fundamentals rules of discourse, in order to establish a transparent and democratic
dialogue. Thenceforth, he argued against Foucault and
Louis Althusser that power was not immanent to discourse, and that philosophy could be completely distinguished from
ideology.
More recently, there has been a move among academics to differentiate power from a new concept of
luck. Under some conditions (particularly the when examining the third dimension of power) it becomes necessary to determine who obtains a favourable result through the wielding of genuine power and who is simply "lucky". An example might be an ethnic minority who receive favourable treatment while not intentionally seeking it. A person promoted through positive discrimination would be considered "lucky" rather than "powerful". The eventual aim of such discrimination would be to eventually convert some (or all) of that luck into power. Some groups remain serially lucky without ever obtaining power.
References
1.
^ I.C. MacMillan (1978) Strategy Formulation: political concepts, St Paul, MN, West Publishing;
Imperium in a broad sense translates as power. In ancient Rome the concept applied to people, and meant something like "power status" or "authority", or could be used with a geographical connotation and meant something like "territory".
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Much of the recent sociological debate on power revolves around the issue of the constraining and/or enabling nature of power. The most comprehensive account of power can be found in Steven Lukes where he discusses the three dimensions of power.
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society is a grouping of individuals which is characterized by common interests and may have distinctive culture and institutions. Members of a society may be from different ethnic groups.
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Sovereignty is the exclusive right to complete political (e.g. legislative, judicial, and/or executive) control over an area of governance, people, or oneself. A sovereign is the supreme lawmaking authority, subject to no other.
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Much of the recent sociological debate on power revolves around the issue of the constraining and/or enabling nature of power. The most comprehensive account of power can be found in Steven Lukes where he discusses the three dimensions of power.
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Charles-Louis de Secondat, baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu (before January 18, 1689 in Bordeaux – February 10, 1755), was a French social commentator and political thinker who lived during the Era of the Enlightenment.
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A legislature is a type of representative deliberative assembly with the power to adopt laws.
Legislatures are known by many names, the most common being parliament and congress, although these terms also have more specific meanings.
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In political science and constitutional law, the executive is the branch of government responsible for the day-to-day management of the state. In many countries, it is referred to simply as the government, but this usage can be confusing in an international context.
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In the law, the
judiciary or
judicial system is the system of courts which administer justice in the name of the sovereign or state, a mechanism for the resolution of disputes.
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[1][2], is a model for the governance of democratic states. The model is also known as
Trias Politica.
..... Click the link for more information. Motto
"Bhinneka Tunggal Ika" (Old Javanese)
"Unity in Diversity"
National ideology: Pancasila[1]
Anthem
Indonesia Raya
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IndonesiaThis article is part of the series:
Politics and government of
Indonesia
- Pancasila
- Constitution
- President (List)
- Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
..... Click the link for more information. Power projection (or force projection) is a term used primarily in American military and political science to refer to the capacity of a state to implement policy by means of force, or the threat thereof, in an area distant from its own territory.
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Military science is the study of the , psychology, practice and other phenomena which constitute war and armed conflict. It strives to be a scientific system that if properly employed, will greatly enhance the practitioner's ability to prevail in an armed conflict with any
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Political science is a branch of social science concerned with theory, description, analysis and prediction of political behavior, political systems and politics broadly-construed.
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A state is a political association with effective dominion over a geographic area. It usually includes the set of institutions that claim the authority to make the rules that govern the people of the society in that territory, though its status as a state often depends in part on
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Motto
"In God We Trust" (since 1956)
"E Pluribus Unum" ("From Many, One"; Latin, traditional)
Anthem
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- Department of Defense redirects here. For the defense departments in governments of other countries, see defence ministry.
United States
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International relations, a branch of political science, is the study of foreign affairs and global issues among states within the international system, including the roles of states, inter-governmental organizations (IGOs), non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and
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Hard power is a term used in international relations. Hard power is a theory that describes using military and economic means to influence the behavior or interests of other political bodies.
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A standing army is an army composed of full time professional soldiers who 'stand over', in other words, who do not disband during times of peace. They differ from army reserves who are activated only during such times as war or natural disasters.
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In international relations, a regional power is a state that has power within a geographic region.[1][2]
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Military logistics is the art and science of planning and carrying out the movement and maintenance of military forces. In its most comprehensive sense, it is those aspects or military operations that deal with:
..... Click the link for more information. Military deployment is the movement of armed forces and their logistical support infrastructure. In most of the world's navies, a deployment designates an extended period of duty at sea.
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Hard power is a term used in international relations. Hard power is a theory that describes using military and economic means to influence the behavior or interests of other political bodies.
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Soft power is a term used in international relations theory to describe the ability of a political body, such as a state, to indirectly influence the behavior or interests of other political bodies through cultural or ideological means.
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Combat, or fighting, is purposeful violent conflict intended to establish dominance over the opposition.
The term "combat" (French for "fight") typically refers to armed conflict between military forces in warfare, whereas the more general term "fighting" can refer to
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The humanitarian response to the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was prompted by one of the worst natural disasters of modern times. On 26 December the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake, struck off the northwest coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, spawned a tsunami that wreaked
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