Exploring Negative Beliefs About Power

Abstract

Abstract. “The powerful are immoral”! Across four preregistered studies (total N = 2,744), we explored the role of perceived autonomy (control over own resources) and perceived influence (control over others’ resources) for this belief. In Study 1, perceived autonomy and influence mediated the effect of power on expected immorality. Likewise, directly manipulating perceived autonomy and influence led to increased expected immorality, increased perceived intentionality of a transgression, and consequently to harsher punishment recommendations (Studies 3 and 4). Interestingly, Study 2 revealed an interaction between autonomy and influence, which we however could not replicate in Study 4. Overall, our findings suggest that both autonomy and influence are associated with immorality and thus likely drive the belief that the powerful are immoral.

The mitigating effect of desiring status on social backlash against ambitious women

“…Finally, by investigating how perceivers react differently to men and women's desires for power and/or status, the current work builds upon previous literature examining social perceptions of individuals who already possess high power and/or status (e.g., Fragale, Overbeck, & Neale, 2011;Hu, Rucker, & Galinsky, 2016;Wingen & Dohle, 2021) by adding a gender component. For example, Fragale et al (2011) found evidence suggesting that, absent any information on gender, targets who possessed high status or high power were perceived to be more dominant, but targets who had power without status were perceived as the least warm.…”