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Power: Do Powerful People Want Your Opinion, Care What You Think, Use Sex, And Know What Happens When YOU are Powerless?

by Kevin Hogan

Struggles for power within a group sometimes culminate in a revolution, in which all members of the most dominant family are suddenly attacked by entire families of subordinates. These revolutions result in drastic changes in the structure of power within rhesus societies, not unlike those occurring following human revolutions.

There is one situation, however, in which all of the well-established social structure evaporates: when a group of rhesus macaques confronts another one and monkey warfare begins. Rhesus macaques dislike strangers and will viciously attack their own image in a mirror, thinking it's a stranger threatening them. When warfare begins, "Even a low- ranking rhesus loner becomes an instant patriot. Every drop of xenophobia in rhesus blood is transformed into fuel for battle," Maestripieri wrote.

"What rhesus macaques and humans may have in common is that many of their psychological and behavioral dispositions have been shaped by intense competition between individuals and groups during the evolutionary history of these species" Maestripieri said. Rhesus groups can function like armies, and this may explain why these monkeys have been so successful in the competition with other primates.

Pressure to find Machiavellian solutions to social problems may also have led to the evolution of larger human brains.

"Our Machiavellian intelligence is not something we can be proud of, but it may be the secret of our success. If it contributed to the evolution of our large brains and complex cognitive skills, it also contributed to the evolution of our ability to engage in noble spiritual and intellectual activities, including our love and compassion for other people", Maestripieri said.

Adapted from materials provided by University of Chicago, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS. University of Chicago (2007, 10/25). Humans And MonkeysShare Machiavellian Intelligence.

Powerful People Ignore Other People's Opinions.... but there is a solution....

Don't bother trying to persuade your boss of a new idea while he's feeling the power of his position - new research suggests he's not listening to you.

"Powerful people have confidence in what they are thinking. Whether their thoughts are positive or negative toward an idea, that position is going to be hard to change," said Richard Petty, co-author of a new study* and professor of psychology at Ohio State University.

The best way to get leaders to consider new ideas is to put them in a situation where they don't feel as powerful, the research suggests.

"If you temporarily make a powerful person feel less powerful, you have a better chance of getting them to pay attention," said Pablo Briñol, lead author of the study and a social psychologist at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid in Spain. Briñol is a former postdoctoral fellow at Ohio State.

For more fascinating research results about leaders and power, turn the page...

Continue: Page | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |

Kevin Hogan
Network 3000 Publishing
3432 Denmark #108
Eagan, MN 55123
(612) 616-0732

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