A Subtle Source of Power: The Effect of Having an Expectation on Anticipated Interpersonal Power

Abstract

In 2 studies, the authors tested the hypothesis that having information about another person can be a source of power in interpersonal interactions. In Study 1, the authors randomized participants to receive an expectation about an interaction partner, and the expectation provided an informational advantage for some participants but not for others. Participants with an advantage reported higher perceptions of power than did those who had information that did not confer an advantage; however, the effect was isolated to feelings of informational power. In Study 2, the authors examined whether the effect extended to different types of power when the information did not provide an explicit advantage. In this case, participants who received a more ambiguous expectation reported more diffuse feelings of power. The authors discuss implications for understanding the dynamics of power in social interactions. Keywords expectations; power; social information; social interactionsInterpersonal interactions often occur in a context in which at least one of the participants in the interaction has an expectation about the other. For example, a person may go on a date having heard from friends or colleagues that the date is with someone who is outgoing, intelligent, and attractive. Similarly, an employer typically may not interview a candidate for a job until the candidate's resume and references have been thoroughly examined, giving the interviewer a rich source of expectations about the candidate's attributes.These expectations can influence the subsequent interaction in a variety of ways. For example, the types of information that individuals choose to gather about another person can be influenced by their expectations (Snyder & Swann, 1978a, 1978b. Moreover, expectations influence what information is used to make decisions about the person (Snyder & Cantor, 1979) and is subsequently recalled (Darley & Gross, 1983;Snyder & Uranowitz, 1978). Furthermore, expectations may lead people to alter their interaction behaviors in ways guided Address correspondence to Mark Snyder, Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, 75 East River Road, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA; msnyder@umn.edu (e-mail). Publisher's Disclaimer: Copyright of Journal of Social Psychology is the property of Heldref Publications and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. NIH Public AccessAuthor Manuscript J Soc Psychol. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2010 February 1. NIH-PA Author ManuscriptNIH-PA Author Manuscript NIH-PA Author Manuscriptby the content of their expectations (Skrypnek & Snyder, 1982;Word, Zanna, & Cooper, 1974;Zanna & Pack, 1975). Last, having an expectation about another person can lead to behavioral confirmation by influencing the course of social interaction such that the other person confirms the expectation (Rosenthal & Jacobson, 1968;Snyder, Tanke...

Facilitating the Pygmalion effect: The overlooked role of subordinate perceptions of the leader

“…Research in this area has typically focused on dyads with status‐based or power differentials (e.g., supervisor–subordinate). As stated by Baldwin, Kiviniemi, and Snyder (2009), ‘the literature on power and expectations has demonstrated that explicitly providing a person with power over another person influences the ways in which expectations function and influence the outcomes of the interaction’ (p. 85). Consistent with Snyder and Stukas’ (1999) observation, many of the settings in which the Pygmalion effect has been demonstrated have taken place in situations with large differences in power between the observer/perceiver and the target.…”

Consumer co-creation and the impact on intermediaries

“…This form of value creation also serves as a source of power. Informational power is defined as one channel member controlling whether information is shared with the other party, being able to explicate information or contingencies not previously available to the other channel member, and the source channel member is able to demonstrate the logic of suggested actions with this information (Baldwin et al, 2009;Eyuboglu and Atac, 1991;Kasulis and Spekman, 1980;Raven, 1992Raven, , 1993Raven and Kruglanski, 1970). Eyuboglu and Atac (1991, p. 199) argue:…”

Empowered by Persuasive Deception

“…Low-power individuals have been shown to use deception to preserve some level of power in situations where they are relatively powerless (Fainzang, 2002; Robinson, Shepherd, & Heywood, 1998). This preservation of power may occur by virtue of deceivers possessing information that another person does not have; possessing information unavailable to others has been shown to be a source of power (Baldwin, Kiviniemi, & Snyder, 2009). In other words, deceivers leverage power through access to and knowledge of accurate information.…”