Power corrupts (or does it?): An examination of the boundary conditions of the antisocial effects of experienced power

Abstract

One of the most common conclusions in the power literature is that when people feel powerful, they behave in selfish and antisocial ways. While this conclusion tends to permeate the literature, research also recognizes that there are factors that can mitigate the corrupting nature of power, and that the experience of power may also lead to more positive and prosocial outcomes. In this article, we review findings that illustrate how individual differences, the contexts in which people experience power, and their construal of power all help determine how powerful people will ultimately behave toward others. We then consider these findings in totality, and suggest that they may articulate a more complex conceptualization of power as it relates to social behaviors. Specifically, we suggest considering not only the amount of power one has but also focusing on the way individuals experience power may provide a way to reconcile the disparate findings in the social power literature. We argue that research should expand upon the possible dualistic nature of power, and how the existence of both positive and negative construals of power can influence behaviors.

Elucidating the Effect of Perceived Power on Destructive Responses during Romantic Conflicts

“…The second, perhaps most noteworthy, finding from this research is that the perception of having power is associated with greater destructive and lower constructive responses to the extent that the conflict was severe and participants had a low IOS. We provide evidence that powerful individuals do not invariably behave destructively in a conflictual situation instead, these findings advance the close relationship literature by identifying the particular conditions under destructive responses can be triggered in powerful individuals (Foulk et al, 2020). Specifically, as we have shown, these oppositional responses may be particularly relevant in situations of severe conflict, which presumably endanger their important personal goals (Carpenter, 2017).…”

“…Indeed, previous work has shown that when threats to power are high, restoring power has priority, leading to a cascade of defensive responses that aim at protecting individuals from harm (Bukowski et al, 2017;Deng et al, 2018;Weiss et al, 2020). Thus, we suggest that the higher the perceived degree of conflict, the more the power-holder sees reasons to suspect the possibility of their own goals could be blocked and thus, they might respond to perceived constraints upon their power by increasing negative or antisocial behaviors to get their way during interpersonal conflicts (Carpenter, 2017;Deng et al, 2018;Foulk et al, 2020). As a result of these dynamics, we predicted that the perception of having power would be associated with an increase in destructive responses during romantic conflicts (and a decrease in constructive ones), to the extent that people identify romantic conflict as severe.…”

“…These power dynamics may have important consequences when negotiating conflicts. In particular, because powerful people are relatively more independent of others, they have the option to decide between displaying constructive or destructive responses during a romantic discussion (Foulk et al, 2020;Rusbult & Zembrodt, 1986). Constructive responses refer to an attempt to maintain the relationship via cooperative or prosocial behaviors such as seeking help, explaining one's point of view, and suggesting solutions to problems.…”

“…In fact, romantic relationships cannot survive long terms if people always act in a dysfunctional manner (Karremans & Smith, 2010). Therefore, albeit the antisocial view of power may predominate the power literature, powerful individuals might not invariably behave destructively in any conflictual situation (Foulk et al, 2020). Additionally exploring how relationship power may interlock with the other situational and relational factors provides refined insights (Tost & Johnson, 2019).…”

Cheating to win or not to lose: Power and situational framing affect unethical behavior

“…Even though some empirical evidence backs up this observation (Bendahan et al, 2015;Giurge et al, 2019), evidence is inconsistent (see Fleischmann et al, 2019;Foulk et al, 2020), and research remains incomplete. In addition, evidence has focused mainly on the domain of gains (e.g., cheating for money and other resources).…”