Authority

The right or power to direct and demand performance and obedience, enforce laws, determine or judge. It also includes the right to specify the means and methods by which work will be executed. The term is derived from the Latin word auctorius.

A public authority is a type of public benefit corporation, or public corporation contracted by a state to perform a defined public service. A public authority typically takes on a more bureaucratic role and is granted broad powers to regulate or maintain public property. The organization is generally run by boards of directors who are appointed rather than elected. Such corporations are often found in common-law jurisdictions, such as the British Commonwealth countries, and often operate in heavily regulated industries, such as transportation. In a broader sense, a public authority could represent any corporation that exists for a charitable or nonprofit purpose. Most likely having roots in mercantile capitalism, the first public authority on record is the Port of London Authority, established in 1908.

While the terms power and authority are often used interchangeably, their meanings are distinct. When power is legitimized, it is called authority. The transformation of power into authority is seen in the relationship between supervisors and subordinates in organizations. For example, university faculty have authority over graduate assistants because they direct and supervise their work. Department chairs have authority over faculty for the same reasons. Those in authority are responsible for keeping activities aligned with goals. Authority is most effective when it is respected by subordinates and supported by superiors. Thus, for a department chair's authority to be effective, he or she should be respected by the faculty and supported by the dean.

Authority is often linked to legitimacy. People obey authority as long as they believe that it is legitimate. College students obey their instructors because they recognize their academic credentials and expertise in a particular area as legitimate. Faculty members obey their department chair because he or she has been vested with power by the college's dean. Although authority is distinct from leadership, authorities may be leaders. There are also examples of individuals having authority but not being leaders. The timekeeper at an academic competition might have authority, but he or she is not necessarily a leader.

The sociologist Max Weber made distinctions between three types of authority: rational-legal, traditional, and charismatic. Rational-legal authority depends on written rules and laws for its legitimacy. This type of authority is extended to individuals by virtue of the office that they hold. For example, a student government association president has rational-legal authority because he or she was elected to a position by the student body. When the student leaves his or her position as president of the Student Government Association, he or she no longer has the authority of his or her former office. Traditional authority derives from long-established customs and social structure. This type of authority may be seen in a family where a patriarch has power over other members of the family, or in a monarchy, where the king has power over the member of the kingdom. Charismatic authority derives from the charisma or personality of a leader. Charismatic authorities are obeyed because followers have a strong emotional attachment to them. Examples include Dr. Martin Luther King and Jim Jones, of Jonestown, Guyana. For more information, see Bolman and Deal (1997) and Pfeffer (1981).

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