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Showing posts with the label power relationships

How Social Position Empowers Our Opinions

Sharing knowledge and information is an important part of learning and development in society. Active members improve upon the social construction of knowledge. The same process occurs in all groups regardless if it is a network of friends, a classroom, or on a macro social setting. A study in the Academy of Management Learning & Education brings forward the idea that social position determines whether or not we participate or withhold information in discussions (Yi-Shun, et. al., 2014). Think for a moment how we sit among our friends and discuss life events and seek to create social agreement on those issues. Sometimes these may be personal issues while at other times they are more functional in nature like business or politics. Providing information and sharing perspectives is a natural part of that process as each member evaluates this information and comes to a conclusion. Eventually a shared coconscious will evolve where negotiated understandings solidify into a