Lesson Report:
Title: Power, Rules, and Legitimacy: From Organizational Rules to Public Policy
Synopsis: This session completed the “power on campus� field activity, then reviewed how rules make power visible and distinguish organizational rules from public policy. Students mapped real campus rules to enforcers, punishments, and drivers of compliance, and the instructor introduced legitimacy as the perceived rightfulness of authority, linking it to compliance and the risks of over-relying on coercion. Next week will pivot to ideology as a lens for how people think about and use power.
Attendance
– Mentioned absent: 2 (students noted as missing partners during sharing)
– Notable: One new transfer student joined.
Topics Covered (chronological)
1) Tech check and session framing (Zoom)
– Brief late start due to setup; instructor enabled screen sharing.
– Welcomed a newly transferred student.
– Noted that an icebreaker to learn names will be done when back in person; current session remains on Zoom.
2) Completing last Thursday’s “Power Is Visible� campus field activity
– Structure: Students (in pairs/teams) were asked to share one photo/example from campus where power is visible and explain what kind of power it shows, who is involved, and what’s at stake.
– Examples presented:
– Gym/classroom authority
– Observation: Instructor at the front directing a class; students also approached the instructor during add/drop for advice and signatures.
– Power type: Position-based and institutional authority (control over grades and administrative forms).
– Stakeholders and stakes: Instructor, enrolled students, and drop/add students; stakes included course grades and schedule changes.
– Instructor note: Highlights how instructional authority overlaps with institutional processes and gatekeeping.
– Add/drop gatekeeping (professor’s signature)
– Observation: In an office (3rd floor, room 310), a professor declined to sign a student’s add form (“I will not sign your add formâ€�).
– Power type: Institutional authority; professor acts as gatekeeper constraining or enabling a student’s plan.
– Stakes: Students’ workload, prerequisites, timely progress to graduation; professors’ obligation to uphold institutional standards and class capacity limits.
– Instructor note: Clear demonstration of institutional rules, resource limits, and the asymmetry of decision rights.
– Library as diffuse rule-based power
– Observation: Quiet environment; borrowing requires ID; due dates enforced; no food/drink or noise; orderly, clean space maintained by staff.
– Power type: Rule-based, system-level power with soft enforcement; librarians and staff as enforcers; security as escalation.
– Compliance drivers: Norms of scholarly conduct, shared values (quiet, care for resources), and sanctions (fines/holds) if rules are broken.
– Instructor note: Illustrates how power can be embedded in rules and norms without a single visible authority figure.
– Surveillance cameras
– Observation: Cameras around campus convey constant watchfulness.
– Power type: Administrative/security power; surveillance implying potential enforcement.
– Compliance drivers: Feeling observed (deterrence), plus safety benefits (theft resolution).
– Instructor note: Dual interpretation—control vs. safety—and only authorized authorities can install and use such systems.
3) Quick review: Organizational rules vs. public policy
– Objective: Distinguish organizational rules from public policy by authority, enforcement capacity, and ultimate sanctions.
– Key concept reminder: Monopoly on force/violence belongs to the state; organizations do not have it.
– Classification exercise:
– Professor extends an essay deadline (organizational rule)
– Enforcement: Grades, course penalties, academic sanctions; no extramural coercion.
– Instructor’s illustrative boundary: No “AUCA jailâ€�; organizational sanctions stop at institutional boundaries.
– City bans right-hand-drive cars in Bishkek (public policy)
– Authority/enforcement: City authorities (e.g., mayor’s office); fines escalate to arrest if noncompliant.
– Diagnostic: Public policy can ultimately be enforced through state coercion.
– Terminology clarified:
– Enforcement: Making sure a rule is followed, with punishment for violations.
– Compliance: Choosing to follow a rule (can be driven by fear of punishment and/or acceptance of the rule’s value).
4) Rule Enforcement Map activity (breakout rooms, ~10 minutes)
– Instructions:
– In groups, share your campus power examples; select one.
– Identify the rule and whether it is de jure (written), de facto (practiced), or both.
– Identify enforcers (can be multiple) and specific punishments for violations.
– Analyze what drives compliance: fear of sanctions vs. agreement with the rule’s legitimacy or utility.
– Report-outs:
– Room 1: Tardiness policy
– Nature: De jure (syllabus) and de facto (widely known and practiced).
– Enforcers: Professor; administration as backstop.
– Punishments: Point deductions to an X grade in worst cases.
– Compliance drivers: Desire to learn and avoid penalties; recognition of collective benefit of punctuality.
– Room 2: Add/drop forms
– Enforcers: Professor and administration.
– Punishments: Inability to adjust study plan; knock-on effects on workload and prerequisites.
– Compliance drivers: Institutional authority and the consequences of missing required signatures.
– Room 4: Add/drop (variation)
– Enforcers: University and individual instructor (limited seats; instructor discretion).
– Punishments/constraints: Seat and capacity limits; inability to realize preferred schedule.
– Compliance drivers: Desire for an optimal schedule; trust in instructor’s expertise; norm of respecting instructor authority.
5) Introducing legitimacy
– Prompt scenario: At 21:01, security stops you from re-entering to retrieve a jacket, moments after allowing another student to pass. Fair?
– Student reactions: Felt unfair; perceived potential favoritism or corruption; objections even with possible unknown exceptions.
– Instructor’s point: Perceptions matter; legitimacy is about shared belief that authority’s use of power is justified.
– Definition: Legitimacy = general consensus that power/authority is rightful and justified.
– Link to compliance:
– When legitimacy is high: Compliance is driven by both acceptance of rules’ value and measured sanctions.
– When legitimacy erodes: Compliance relies more on force; dissatisfaction rises; risk of rejection of authority increases.
– Forward link: This sets the stage for examining political violence and revolution (later in semester). Student query about Fanon’s Wretched of the Earth acknowledged as relevant for those later weeks.
6) Wrap-up and preview
– Summary of the power unit:
– Power: Capacity to make others do what they otherwise wouldn’t.
– Rules: A primary way power becomes visible; enforcement vs. compliance as dual mechanisms.
– Legitimacy: Essential to sustainable rule-following without overreliance on coercion.
– Next topic (next week): Ideology—how belief systems shape the use and interpretation of power.
– Homework: A short reading to be posted on e-course tonight; due Tuesday.
– Support for new transfer student: Read last week’s assigned reading to catch up; office hours available if questions remain.
– Class request: Photo of the board to be posted to the Telegram group.
Actionable Items
Urgent (before next class)
– Post the “short readingâ€� assignment to e-course and announce due date (Tuesday).
– Upload/send the board photo to the Telegram group as requested.
– Confirm Zoom plan for one more week; communicate any updates to students.
Upcoming (next session)
– Prepare and deliver the Ideology introduction (key terms, examples, and an activity).
– Revisit the unfinished activity planned for today (decide whether to integrate into the ideology session or assign asynchronously).
– Plan a quick name-learning icebreaker for the first in-person session back.
Follow-ups/Support
– Check in with the new transfer student to ensure access to e-course and prior readings; offer office hours to catch up.
– Provide a concise glossary (enforcement, compliance, monopoly on force, organizational rules, public policy, legitimacy) on e-course for reference.
– Note: Chat audio notifications were missed during lecture; consider a brief protocol (students unmute if urgent) and add to class norms.
Homework Instructions:
ASSIGNMENT #1: Short Reading on Ideology
You will complete a short reading that bridges our work on power, rules, enforcement/compliance, and legitimacy into next week’s focus on ideology, helping you connect how people think about power to how rules are created and justified.
Instructions:
1) Log in to eCourse later tonight and locate the “short reading� the professor said will be posted for next class. Download it.
2) Read the entire piece carefully before Tuesday’s class. It is short, but read actively: annotate key ideas and highlight definitions or examples that connect to our recent lessons.
3) As you read, keep our core concepts in mind and take brief notes for yourself:
– Power and rules: How does the reading suggest ideologies shape which rules get made?
– Enforcement vs. compliance: Where does the text imply people follow rules because of punishment versus because they agree with them?
– Legitimacy: How do different ideologies affect what people view as fair, justified, or “abuse of powerâ€�?
4) Make at least one connection to the campus examples we discussed (e.g., library quiet rules, security cameras, add/drop approvals, lateness policies). Be ready to explain how an ideological lens might interpret those rules and the authority behind them.
5) Come prepared on Tuesday to discuss: a working definition of ideology, how it relates to legitimacy, and how both differ from but interact with organizational rules versus public policy and the government’s monopoly on force.
6) Submission: None. Just complete the reading and bring your notes to use in discussion.