Understanding power to achieve social change

To bring about social change you need to understand power and power relations

Many people have a negative view of power, this is not surprising given that it's traditionally seen as a 'power over' relationship – that is 'the ability to get someone to do something they would not otherwise do.' This view implies that any gain in power inevitably means a loss of power for someone else. But practitioners and academics have identified alternative understandings of power where power is used not to dominate but empower, promote collective goals and hopefully bring about change. In these understandings of power working together produces mutual gain and there need be no losers.

How you understand power will play a large role in shaping how you make change happen. If you stick to the more traditional view you might overestimate the power of your opponents. Or, if you underestimate your own collective power, you might miss opportunities to empower marginalised groups or persuade decision makers to share power more widely.

Power and social change

This comprehensive PDF guide focuses on helping you think strategically about how to bring about change through a series of chapters that can either be read on their own or as a whole. It seeks to complement existing practical guides and resources and is aimed at people who want to think more deeply and tactically about the issues of power and change.

Power and change - introduces the main concepts of power and sources of power organisations could have.
How change happens -overview of some of the key ways change can happen to inform your strategy and tactics.
Routes to change - identifies possible routes to change such as policy and behaviour changes and how organisations can build their capacity and opportunities to influence change.
Sector and government - looks at how the relationship between government and the sector has changed and the implications for the way organisations work - from increased public service delivery to joint working and competition.
Checklist tool - to help you identify and assess the issues promoting and resisting change and help you develop a strategic response.

Download Power and Social Change - Ruth Mayne and Jim Coe (PDF, 2.28MB)

Read short summary of the key concepts - NCVO (PDF, 110KB)

Do let us know what you think, any feedback is always appreciated.

'A brilliant survey and explanation of a massive and complex issue, with real efforts to get to the ‘so what’ for voluntary organizations in the UK. Deserves to be widely read and above all, put into practice.'
Duncan Green, Oxfam UK

“As campaigners our work needs to be based in an understanding of power and social change. This book brings them together in a practical manner, and provides a theoretical background to campaign planning. A must-read for all campaigners!”
Lee Webster, Campaigns Manager, CARE International UK