Force and Free Will: Re-Evaluating Influence Tactics In Terms of Their Underlying Power and Volitional Influence

Authors:

Abstract: People engage in behaviors intended to influence others’ actions, beliefs, or attitudes. Scholars have studied and catalogued these behaviors into a number of taxonomies; together, these constitute a comprehensive corpus of influencing behaviors. The act of influencing verb comprises two different properties—power and persuasion—though the literature on influence behaviors typically focuses on the latter. We contribute a classification of influencing behaviors based on the amount of power and volitional influence an influencing agent requires in the dyadic relationship with their target. Our work provides an influencing target’s perspective of what would make them comply with an influence attempt. This work integrates the influence tactic and power literatures, enabling researchers in these domains to connect influencing behaviors with outcomes based not just on a person’s authority—e.g., whether they are influencing their supervisor or subordinate—but also other forms of power, as well as the agent’s volitional influence.

Track: TEAM

Keywords: Influence, power, influence tactics