Luke's Three Dimensions Of Power In Social Work
This essay aims to explore and analyse theories of power- predominantly two main theories which are Luke’s three dimensions of power and Foucault’s analysis of power. These shall be applied to the practice of Social Work and shall examine the issue of Black and Ethnic Minority (BAME) groups who are argued to be marginalised and oppressed within UK mental health services. It shall then explore how theories of power can help Social Worker’s to understand why such inequality is present in today’s contemporary Social Work Practice and how understanding power in practice might lead to the empowerment of service users.
This essay does not seek to address what power is but seeks to use and explore it as a concept and apply it to theoretical perspectives …show more content…
Lukes’ (1975, 2004) embraced the already two existing dimensions to the concept of power and critiqued them by proposing a further, third dimension.
The first dimension (known as decision making) - is by Dahl in, whose theory suggests power exists when ‘A has power over B to the extent he can get B to do something B would not otherwise do’ and in which the observation of decision making was key. Dahl later added in his work,’ The Concept of Power’, an additional use of power, in which ‘A successfully attempts a to do something he would not otherwise do’. This separates as Lukes’ describes (2004: 15) ‘the difference between potential and actual power’. This dimension is concerned with focusing on the observation of conflict of interests.
Furthermore, the second dimension of power by Peter Bachrach & Morton Baratz proposes power has a further, secondary face- that being successful control in shaping political agendas. This power exists by keeping political issues from becoming actual issues and by the powerful selecting which political issues are key. It is known as the ‘mobilisation of bias’ as it allows existing grievances in society to be prevented, hidden from public and from entering political agenda. In other words, manipulating what is discussed and conscious to the powerlessness such as manipulation of voting rules.
This essay does not seek to address what power is but seeks to use and explore it as a concept and apply it to theoretical perspectives …show more content…
Lukes’ (1975, 2004) embraced the already two existing dimensions to the concept of power and critiqued them by proposing a further, third dimension.
The first dimension (known as decision making) - is by Dahl in, whose theory suggests power exists when ‘A has power over B to the extent he can get B to do something B would not otherwise do’ and in which the observation of decision making was key. Dahl later added in his work,’ The Concept of Power’, an additional use of power, in which ‘A successfully attempts a to do something he would not otherwise do’. This separates as Lukes’ describes (2004: 15) ‘the difference between potential and actual power’. This dimension is concerned with focusing on the observation of conflict of interests.
Furthermore, the second dimension of power by Peter Bachrach & Morton Baratz proposes power has a further, secondary face- that being successful control in shaping political agendas. This power exists by keeping political issues from becoming actual issues and by the powerful selecting which political issues are key. It is known as the ‘mobilisation of bias’ as it allows existing grievances in society to be prevented, hidden from public and from entering political agenda. In other words, manipulating what is discussed and conscious to the powerlessness such as manipulation of voting rules.