The Empowerment Process: Integrating Theory and Practice

Abstract

Despite increasing attention on the topic of empowerment, our under-standing of the construct and its underlying processes remains limited. This article addresses these shortcomings by providing an analytical treatment of the construct and by integrating the diverse approaches to empowerment found in both the management and psychology literatures. In addition, the authors identify certain antecedent conditions of powerlessness and practices that have been hypothesized to empower subordinates.