4 Summary of Week 3

Power and resistance are closely related, feeding from one another to generate ongoing struggle. Resistance leadership provides a necessary spark of energy that enables organisations, communities and societies to adapt and become more equitable. It is possible to define resistance leadership as the process whereby the less powerful gain more power in relation to the status quo while providing direction for meaningful change; and this process always requires the less powerful to accept more responsibility for their own emancipation.

One way in which resistance can help strengthen the leadership of organisations is through constructive dissent, which offers essential challenge to enable organisations to grow and adapt with the times. More radical forms of resistance leadership – such as dissensual leadership – have very different aims, usually to abolish and rebuild organisations that are deemed too ethically compromised to continue in their present form. When transitioning from resistance to power, there are some key challenges to bear in mind. These include: the tendency of groups to mimic the power they resist; the counter-resistance offered by those people in power who are being challenged; and the tendency of some resistance groups to become stuck in practices of opposing. Next week you will build on this knowledge by exploring the variety and effectiveness of various forms of resistance leadership.

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