社会心理学家约翰.弗伦奇（John.French）和伯特伦.雷文（Bertram.Raven）在他们1959年发表的一篇迄今不朽的论文中，提出了五种权力类别的模型，这个模型折射出权力拥有者依赖的不同基础或资源。

Legitimate Power Legitimate Power refers to power of an individual because of the relative position and duties of the holder of the position within an organization. Legitimate Power is formal authority delegated to the holder of the position. It is usually accompanied by various attributes of power such as uniforms, offices etc. This is the most obvious and also the most important kind of power.

 合法权力

合法权力是指个人因为在组织中的职位和职务而拥有的权力。合法权力是代表该职位而拥有的正式职位权力。它通常伴随着诸如制服、办公室等各种权力特征。这是最明显也是最重要的一种权力。

Referent Power Referent Power means the power or ability of individuals to attract others and build loyalty. It\’s based on the charisma and interpersonal skills of the power holder. Here the person under power desires to identify with these personal qualities, and gains satisfaction from being an accepted follower. Nationalism or Patriotism counts towards an intangible sort of referent power as well. For example, soldiers fight in wars to defend the honor of the country. This is the second least obvious power, but the most effective.

参照性权力

参照性权力是指个人具有的吸引他人并建立起他人对自己的忠诚度的权力或能力。这种权力是基于权力拥有者超凡的个人魅力和人际关系技能的。这种权力的追随者非常认同这些个人品质，并且从自己是个公认的追随者中得到满足。民族主义或爱国主义也被认为是一种无形的参照性权力。例如，战士为了保卫国家的荣誉而战斗在战争中。这是第二显明的权力（相对于合法权力而言），但是是最有效的。

Expert Power Expert Power is an individual\’s power deriving from the skills or expertise of the person and the organization\’s needs for those skills and expertise. Unlike the others, this type of power is usually highly specific and limited to the particular area in which the expert is trained and qualified.

 专家权力

专家权力是一种个人权力，它来自于这个人具有某些技能或技术专长，并且这些技能或技术专长正是组织所需要的。与其他的权力类别不同，这种权力通常非常特殊并且仅限于专家受过培训并具备资格的专门领域。

This type of power is further broken down later on as Information Power.

Information Power While the difference between expert power and information power is subtle, people with this type of power are well-informed, up-to-date and also have the ability to persuade others. Another difference would be that people with Expert Power are perceived by his/her image of expertise to show credibility (i.e. a qualified doctor in a doctor uniform), while one with Information Power does not have a strict need to \’look the part of a professional\’, but they must keep up to date with new research, and have confidence in debating, or are persuasive.

这种权力类型后来进一步细分了信息权力。

信息权力

专家权力和信息权力之间的差异非常微小， 拥有这种权力的人消息灵通，掌握最新资讯，并且具备说服他人的能力。另一个差别就是拥有专家权力的人能够通过他/她的专家形象来显示可信度（比如，具备资格的医生会穿着医生制服），从而被认为拥有专家权力；而拥有信息权力的人没有严格要求“看起来比较专业”，但是他们必须保持对最新研究的经常更新，并且具备争辩的自信或者具备说服能力。

Reward Power Reward Power depends upon the ability of the power wielder to confer valued material rewards, it refers to the degree to which the individual can give others a reward of some kind such as benefits, time off, desired gifts, promotions or increases in pay or responsibility. This power is obvious but also ineffective if abused. People who abuse reward power can become pushy or became reprimanded for being too forthcoming or \’moving things too quickly\’.

 奖励权力

奖励权力依赖于这种权力的使用者给予有价值的物质奖励的能力，它涉及个人能够给予他人奖励的程度，比如福利、休假、想要的礼物、晋升或加薪。这种权力是显而易见的，但是如果滥用也会失效。滥用奖励权力的人因为过于赶前或者使事情进展过快，可能变得过于急进或者变得备受指责。

Coercive Power Coercive Power means the application of negative influences onto employees. It might refer to the ability to demote or to withhold other rewards. It\’s the desire for valued rewards or the fear of having them withheld that ensures the obedience of those under power. Coercive Power tends to be the most obvious but least effective form of power as it builds resentment and resistance within the targets of Coercive Power.

惩罚权力

惩罚权力是指对员工应用消极影响。它可能涉及降级或者扣发其他奖金的资格权力。服从于该权力的人是出于对有价值的奖励的渴望或者对得不到奖励的害怕。惩罚权力倾向于是一种最显而易见但又最没有效果的权力形式，因为它会在惩罚权力对象中建立起愤恨和抵抗。