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Supplier flexibility reflects a supplier's operations-related decisions in responsively providing the necessary inputs to the focal firm. Drawing on resource-dependency theory and transaction cost economics, this study develops a conceptual framework to explain the differential effects of a focal firm's power over supplier flexibility in the context of the hub-and-spoke supply chain (SC). This study also considers the goals shared between the focal firm and its suppliers as an important contingency factor within the framework.

This study tests the proposed conceptual framework using dyadic survey data from a hub-and-spoke SC consisting of a large construction contractor and its 100 suppliers in Indonesia.

The findings show that coercive power has an inverted U-shaped effect on supplier flexibility, while legal-legitimate power has a U-shaped effect. Furthermore, shared goals positively moderate the U-shaped effect between legal-legitimate power and supplier flexibility.

This study differentiates between the impacts of coercive power and legal-legitimate power on supplier flexibility in the hub-and-spoke SC. It also demonstrates that shared goals play a moderating role in affecting the impacts of legal-legitimate power on supplier flexibility. These findings also have important implications with regard to integrating resource-dependency theory and transaction cost economics to explain these associations.

This study aims to examine the relationships between power, relationship commitment and customer integration by replicating and extending Zhao et al. (2008) in China and the USA.

This study collects data from 210 manufacturers in China and 202 manufacturers in the USA. In this study, structural equation modelling is used to analyse the data.

This study finds that normative relationship commitment is positively associated with customer integration and expert and referent power are positively associated with normative relationship commitment in China and the USA. Reward and coercive power are positively associated with instrumental relationship commitment in China, whereas referent power is negatively associated. Referent, legal legitimate and reward power are positively associated with instrumental relationship commitment in the USA, whereas expert and legitimate power are negatively associated.

This study provides empirical evidence on the distinct impacts of different bases of mediated and non-mediated power in China and the USA, contributing to the development of the power-relationship commitment theory. The findings also provide insights into where and when the theory applies. The results can provide guidelines for managers to adjust the use of power to improve relationship commitment and customer integration in China and the USA.

This paper studies the impact of gender on frequency of use of influence strategies, amount of power and authoritarianism, using a sample of 109 managers from two organizations in India. Seven downward influence strategies (assertiveness, bargaining, coalition, friendliness, higher authority, reason, and sanctions) and five power bases (reward, referent, legitimate, expert, and coercive) were included in the study. Analysis of variance does not show any difference across gender in any variable studied, and analysis of covariance does not reveal any impact of gender on influence and power after controlling for authoritarianism. Results, however, suggest that gender moderates the impact of authoritarianism on influence and power. Authoritarianism is related positively to assertiveness, bargaining, friendliness and legitimate power for men, negatively to coercive power for men, negatively to friendliness for women, and positively to expert power for both men and women. There is a significant interaction effect of authoritarianism and gender on friendliness.

Building on encapsulated interest account and motivated cognition account, this study aims to investigate how channel members extend trust in a channel leader when the channel leader applies various non-coercive power sources (e.g. referent, expert, legitimate and reward power). Besides, the study explored the changes in channel members’ trust in a channel leader when each non-coercive power source is coupled with coercive power sources.

Using survey items from previously validated scales, the study collected responses from 237 channel members of 3 paint distribution channels in India. Data were analysed using structural equation modelling and multi-group moderation analysis techniques.

Findings indicated that expert and reward power sources enhance trust in channel leaders while affective commitment mediates the effects of all the non-coercive power sources on trust. Further, coercive power weakens the effects of expert power on trust.

The study is based on a cross-sectional survey and confines to the paint industry in India. Replicating this study in other countries and industries will better generalise the study’s findings.

The study recommends that channel managers use power sources to build trust in channel leaders. Consequently, they will be able to emphasise those specific power sources while developing channel management strategies.

The study contributes to a greater understanding of the power-trust relationship.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the use of power in cases of upwards bullying by examining the bases of power that staff members use, and how these bases create power imbalances.

Qualitative, semi-structured interviews were conducted with six managers from several organisations. After completion of each interview, verbatim transcripts were created and examined using NVivo, allowing in-depth thematic analysis. The broad coding schema, developed through a review of the literature, was refined as analysis progressed.

Three major themes emerged: a loss of legitimate power, coercive power, and structural power. The findings suggest a “power cycle” exists in upwards bullying episodes, which is presented diagrammatically. Discussion focusses on the processes that commence with a decrease or loss of a manager’s legitimate power, associated with a lack of organisational support, and staff members’ perceptions of illegitimacy. Managers indicated vulnerability to inappropriate behaviours by staff members, and the potential for greater power imbalances to build due to these behaviours triggering a feedback mechanism, with managers experiencing a further loss of legitimate power.

The study recommends that research into the perspectives of staff members (such as alleged perpetrators) can further strengthen our understanding of the use of power in workplace bullying, and in upwards bullying in particular. Given the applicability of the outcomes of this research to our understanding of workplace bullying, such theory development can also foster practical approaches to addressing workplace bullying within organisations. Understanding the nature of power within workplace bullying processes can inform organisational strategies to disrupt the cycle of inappropriate behaviours, upwards and otherwise.

This study tested a structural equations model of the five French and Raven bases of supervisory power (coercive, reward, legitimate, expert, and referent), styles of handling conflict with supervisor (problem solving and bargaining), and job performance. Employees (N = 1,116) completed questionnaires on power and conflict styles, and their job performance was evaluated by their respective supervisors (N = 398). The data were aggregated for the subordinates associated with a given manager (N = 398) to make sure that independent observation assumption is not violated. The LISREL 8 analysis of data indicates that legitimate power influenced referent power positively and coercive power negatively, and reward and legitimate powers positively influenced expert power, which in turn, positively influenced referent power. Referent power, in turn, positively influenced problem solving (i.e., using more integrating and less avoiding styles) and negatively influenced bargaining (i.e., using more dominating and less obliging styles) conflict‐management styles, and finally, problem solving style, but not bargaining style, positively influenced job performance.

Social commerce platforms are prevalent in the explosion of social media and e-commerce, and they enable conversations across a broad range of topics. However, their success depends on consumers' willingness to invest their time, attention and money. Digital influencers have shown prominent effects on consumers in those social commerce platforms. This study, thus, aims to attempt to unravel the role of digital influencers in affecting consumer engagement and purchase behaviour in online social commerce communities.

A mixed approach with a field interview, an online survey and secondary archive data are presented to confirm all the hypotheses.

Several forms of social power from digital influencers (including expert power, informational power, referent power and legitimate reciprocity power) could influence consumer engagement behaviours (including content participation and content creation). Moreover, the two types of consumer engagement behaviours could further influence consumer purchase likelihood in the social commerce community.

Several forms of social power from digital influencers (including expert power, informational power, referent power and legitimate reciprocity power) could affect consumer engagement behaviours (including content participation and content creation). Moreover, the two types of consumer engagement behaviours could further affect consumer's purchase expenditure in the social commerce community.

This study draws on the theories of social power and social influence and integrates the literature on consumer engagement to explain how digital influencers affect consumer engagement and their purchase behaviour in an online social commerce community. Firstly, this work extends existing studies on the antecedents of consumer engagement in the social commerce communities by considering the role of digital influencers. Secondly, this research advances the theoretical understanding of the influence of digital influencers through a new lens of social power. The findings also contribute to community managers, users who pursue popularity and companies who target business goals.

This chapter revisits and extends the multiple-source, multiple-object theory of legitimacy in organizations. It introduces the idea of legitimized regimes and uses it to extend the theory’s range beyond the usual focus on power and domination. The theory describes mechanisms that: (1) establish the legitimacy of new or contested regimes; and (2) facilitate the spread of legitimacy to structures and processes that lie outside organizational boundaries. The chapter uses current affirmative action debates to illustrate the mechanisms under study. The work concludes with a summary that includes discussion of prospects for research on extensions of the multiple-source, multiple-object theory.

This study compared the dimensionality and possession of the bases of supervisory power and their relationships to compliance and satisfaction with supervision between the U.S. (n = 459) and S. Korean (n = 625) managers. Results indicate that the factor structure of the power bases in the S. Korean sample was remarkably similar to those found in the U.S. sample; but whereas the U.S. managers reported relatively more position than personal power base, S. Korean managers reported relatively more personal than position power base. Similarities in the relationships of coercive, legitimate, and referent power bases to compliance, satisfaction, and dissimilarities in the relationships of expert and reward power bases to the criterion variables in the two samples are noted.

Builds on work in organisational buying. Examines the relationship between power bases and influence strategies in an organisational buying situation, specifically, the decision to purchase the services of an advertising agency. Hypothesises the influence strategies of consultation, coalition, legitimating pressure, exchange, rational persuasion, inspirational appeals and personal appeals, related to source characteristics (power bases). Findings from 150 organisational buying decisions support findings from a recent study in the USA. Suggests that the use of an influence strategy is positively related to the corresponding type of power.