Power (social and political)

Power, in sociology and political theory, relates to the influence and means of coercion which dominant members in a sociological group exercise over their peers.

Niccolo Machiavelli theorised early and influentially on the mechanisms of gaining and retaining political power, publishing The Prince in 1513.Political analysis often personifies nation states as powers, discussing Great Powers, second-order powers and "European powers", for example, with convenient simplicity.

Some schools of psychology, notably that associated with Alfred Adler, place power dynamics at the core of their theory (where orthodox Freudians might place sexuality).

One of the broader modern views of the importance of power in human activity comes from the work of Michel Foucault. Feminist analysis of the patriarchy often concentrates on issues of power: note the "Rape Slogan": Rape is about power, not sex.