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The Effects of Social Power on Goal Content and Goal Striving: A Situated Perspective
Author(s) -
Willis Guillermo B.,
Guinote Ana
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
social and personality psychology compass
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.699
H-Index - 53
ISSN - 1751-9004
DOI - 10.1111/j.1751-9004.2011.00382.x
Subject(s) - perspective (graphical) , goal pursuit , goal setting , hierarchy , psychology , situated , power (physics) , goal orientation , content (measure theory) , social psychology , cognitive psychology , computer science , political science , artificial intelligence , mathematical analysis , physics , mathematics , quantum mechanics , law
In this article, we integrate recent findings on the ways power affects goal pursuit. We review literature suggesting that power has two unique effects on goal pursuit: it affects the goals individuals choose to pursue, and the ways they pursue them. In short, we maintain that power‐holders prefer goals that suit their privileged positions – reward oriented and hierarchy‐maintenance goals – as well as goals that come easily to mind because they are chronically accessible or afforded in the situation. We go on to show that powerful individuals exhibit better self‐regulation during goal striving than powerless individuals, independently of goal content. Finally, we review conditions that reverse the effects of power on goal pursuit.