Power and the Self-Ascription of Agency and Communion

The present research refers to the relation between power and the self-ascription of agency and communion. One hundred and twenty participants-students of non-psychology majors-took part in the experiment conducted via the Internet. The participants were randomly assigned to three groups differing in the level of power primed: high power, low power and no power. The power was primed by having the participants recall situations of being in power over someone else (high power), being under someone else's power (low power) or situations unrelated to power (no power). Participants' self-ascription of agency and communion was measured twice-before and after power priming. Results showed that low power increases the self-ascription of communion whereas high power decreases the self-ascription of agency. The decrease in self-ascription of agency as a result of high power priming was influenced by the kind of interest pursued in stories described by the participants in the power priming task. This decrease was revealed only in the case of participants acting in another's interest. The results are discussed in light of past research and possible implications.