Positional Power and Its Role in Public Administration
Power determines the influence people have. The more power they have, the greater their influence. People acquire and accumulate power in numerous ways, including leadership. In most cases, the power leaders possess stems from their power to influence other people to do their bidding, which is considered either hard or soft power (Johnson, 2019). Accordingly, the type and amount of power depend on an individual’s position; thus, positional power. Therefore, positional power is the power accorded to an individual based on the position held, including legitimacy, rewards, and coercion; it also plays a role in public administration.
According to Henry (2018), the role of positional power in public administration involves effects on their subordinates. Public administration provides individuals with the power to bring about change through policies, giving them positional power. Notably, there are different types of positional power: legitimate, reward, and coercive powers. Legitimate power involves the power from the position held; for instance, a city manager oversees budgets to achieve fiscal objectives in a local government. Secondly, reward power involves the value bestowed by a person in power; for instance, at the state level, governors initiate budget requests, which are rewarded per agency as deemed fit. Lastly, coercive power involves punishments rendered by a person in power. Also, at the federal level, the president can grant pardons for federal crimes (“The Executive Branch – The White House,” n.d.).
Intergovernmental interactions are influenced by positional power in several ways. For instance, local, state and federal budgets vary; the state submits funding/budgets to the state, which submits them to the federal government. Some budgets may not be approved, being rejected for unnecessary expenditure. Subsequently, this leads to hearings where representatives come forth to appeal. These processes illustrate the positional power in intergovernmental interactions.
References
Henry, N. (2018). Public administration and public affairs (13th ed.). Routledge.
Johnson, C. (2019). Meeting the ethical challenges of leadership: Casting light or shadow (6th ed.). SAGE Publications, Inc.
The Executive Branch – The White House. The White House. Retrieved 17 August 2022, from https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/our-government/the-executive-branch/#:~:text=The%20President%20is%20responsible%20for,Presidency%20should%20the%20need%20arise.
ORDER A PLAGIARISM-FREE PAPER HERE
We’ll write everything from scratch
Question 
Define, in your own words, positional power and its role in public administration.
Positional Power and Its Role in Public Administration
Describe how different types of positional power might play out in different public administration arenas (i.e., local, state, and federal)? How does positional power influence intergovernmental interactions (i.e., local, state, and federal)?