The corrosive effects of power

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Post: Lord Acton, English historian, politician, and writer, (1834-1902) warned that 'power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely'. Using the three different perspectives on leadership from the lecture (trait theories, behavioural theories and contingency theories) discuss Lord Acton's statement. Assess both propositions—first, that power corrupts and, second, that absolute power corrupts absolutely—from each of the three perspectives and identify how corruption or abuse of power would be explained by these theories.

In constructing your answer, give examples of various forms of interrelations between power and corruption as well as of successful cases of its disclosure you have met with.

Throughout history, people in power have abused their power as power without checks and balances often leads to corruption or worse. Therefore, researchers have attempted to determine what traits or behavior can most determine if a leader will be responsible, ethical, and most importantly non-corrupt when they gain power. Some of the most recognizable theories associated with power and leadership include trait leadership theory, the behavior theories, which focus on the behavior of leaders, and contingency theories.

Behavior theory

In reference to behavior theory, the primary focus is placed on how a leader behaves as opposed to the mental, physical or social characteristics associated with a leader. This is a departure from trait theories, which will be discussed later. Researchers have attempted to conceptualize the behavior of leaders by measuring cause an effects relationships that exist between specific human behaviors of prominent leaders. This is the most effective assessment of leadership because it analyzes how the proper social conditioning and environment can produce ...