“Power is of two kinds. One is obtained by the fear of punishment, and the other by arts of love.” ~ Gandhi, Young India, January 8, 1925 Kenneth Boulding, a founder of modern peace research, called these respectively “threat power” and “integrative power,” and (economist that he was) identified a third that was between these… read more
Tag Archives: Kenneth Boulding
Sacrifice Trap: Daily Metta
“Western civilization may or may not be good, but Westerners wish to stick to it… They have shed rivers of blood for its sake… It is therefore too late for them now to chalk out a new path for themselves.” ~ Gandhi, Satyagraha in South Africa, p. 84. If it seemed “too late” in this… read more
Sacrifice Trap
The sacrifice trap is a term coined by peace researcher Kenneth Boulding. It describes a situation, often in war, in which a decision maker does not withdraw from the situation because of the sacrifices already made for the cause. The US involvement in Vietnam continued for years because of the sacrifice trap.… read more
Boulding’s First Law
A term coined by Kenneth E. Boulding in his 1972 classic, Stable Peace. Boulding was an economist, poet, peace research pioneer and husband of Elise Boulding the peace sociologist and revered author. The slightly ironic law states: “If something exists, then it must be possible.” The intention is to point up the casual dismissal of… read more
Threat Power
Threat Power is one of three forces identified by Kenneth Boulding, Quaker peace theorist and economist that play roles in human interaction. Underlying Threat Power is a simple equation: Unless you perform or yield X, I will do Y. Y almost always involves violence, whether physical, emotional, psychological or structural. Threat Power has attained a… read more
Exchange Power
Exchange power is the second of Quaker peace theorist and economist Kenneth Boulding’s “three faces of power.” Exchange Power comes into play in most of our every-day actions, for example, economic transactions when we say, “I will give you Y, if you perform or yield X.” Exchange Power may or may not be coercive, so… read more
Integrative Power
Integrative power is the third and least understood of Quaker peace theorist and economist Kenneth Boulding’s “three faces of power.” Integrative power can be articulated as “I will take positive action to represent the truth as I see it, and I have faith that in the process we will draw closer in our relationship.” Boulding… read more
