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The power process is a theoretical process necessary to fulfill one's psychological need to exert power to fulfill goals, discussed in Theodore Kaczynski's manifesto, Industrial Society and Its Future. Kaczinski suggested that the need to undergo the power process was biological, and used historical and modern examples to demonstrate the importance of this need.

Kaczynski defined the power process as not necessarily being the need to exert power over others, in fact, most people living in a more natural environment wouldn't have the desire to. He defines the power process in terms of the need of people to autonomously control and dictate the course of their own lives.

Kaczynski wrote that the power process has four necessary requirements. They are setting goals, exerting serious effort towards achieving one's goals, fulfilling one's goals with a reasonable success rate, and fulfilling one's goals autonomously. He suggested that, while it is important to fulfill the need for autonomy, some people have little or no need for autonomy.

The power process was a concept basic to almost all of the other concepts and ideas Kaczynski wrote about in his manifesto.

Relation to other theories

The power process is much like Jon Elster's theory of self-realization.

Psychology studies have found an innate desire for people to engage in the power process; in the absence of other incentives, children will choose tasks with just the right level of difficulty to advance their skills.

References

• Theodore Kaczynski, Industrial Society and Its Future (aka the Unabomber Manifesto)

1. Jon Elster, "Self-Realization in Work and Politics: The Marxist Conception of the Good Life," Social Philosophy & Policy, 3:2 (Spring 1986), 97-126
2. Alfie Kohn, Punished By Rewards

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