The Power Paradox
How We Gain and Lose Influence
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- £5.99
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- £5.99
Publisher Description
A revolutionary rethinking of everything we know about power
It shapes every interaction we have, whether we're trying to get a two-year-old to eat green vegetables or ask for a promotion at work. But how do we really gain power? And what does it do to us?
As renowned psychologist Dacher Keltner reveals, the new science of power shows that our Machiavellian view of status is wrong. Influence comes not to those who are ruthless, but to those with socially intelligence and empathy. Yet, ironically, the seductions of success lead us to lose those very qualities that made us powerful in the first place. Keltner draws on fascinating case studies to illuminate this 'power paradox', revealing how it shapes not just companies and elections but everyday relationships. As his myth-busting research shows, power - and powerlessness - distorts our behaviour, affecting whether or not we will have an affair, break the law, drive recklessly or find our purpose in life.
In twenty original 'power principles', Keltner shows how we can retain power by maintaining a focus on others. By redefining power as the ability to do good, The Power Paradox turns everything we know about influence, status and inequality upside down.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Keltner, a UC Berkeley psychology professor, takes an innovative look at the idea of power. The titular paradox is that gaining power often causes people to misuse that power and lose it. The book explores why this pattern is so common. Keltner writes about lab experiments in which researchers arbitrarily bestowed roles of superiority on test subjects, who then showed more impulsive and selfish behaviors. Other studies found that people who had grown up poor showed greater empathy than those who grew up with more advantages. Meanwhile, powerlessness has been found to invoke stress responses that lead to slowed development in children and poor health in adults. To counteract this dynamic, Keltner proposes a "fivefold path" composed of self-awareness, humility, generosity, respect, and a commitment to positive social change. He reframes what can seem like an intractable problem in terms that are approachable and solvable: "When I was in my twenties, steeped in the utopian idealism of youth, I wished for a society that would be power free.... This book has changed my view." Power defines daily experience; therefore, he argues, solving this paradox is imperative. His paradigm-shifting book challenges readers to find a new level of awareness about themselves and the leaders they choose to follow.