The Nature of Political Power: Domination of the Mind

Political power is not only exercised through laws, institutions, or physical coercion—it often operates most effectively by shaping the thoughts, beliefs, and perceptions of the populace. This form of domination targets the mind, influencing how people see themselves, others, and the world.

• • Michel Foucault argued that power is embedded in discourse—shaping what is accepted as truth, what can be spoken, and who has the authority to define reality. Power is “everywhere,” operating through knowledge, language, and cultural norms, creating “regimes of truth” that guide collective understanding1.

  • Political actors and institutions reinforce these regimes through education, media, and public rituals, constantly renegotiating what is considered true or false.

• Propaganda and Narrative Framing

  • Political elites use propaganda, selective storytelling, and media manipulation to shape public opinion and limit dissent. This “choice architecture” reduces complex realities into binary oppositions, fostering polarization and diminishing nuanced debate2.

  • By embedding certain narratives in cultural memory, power holders make their preferred worldview appear natural and inevitable.

• Indoctrination and Socialization

  • Through indoctrination—via schools, bureaucratic training, and mass communication—regimes can cultivate loyalty, compliance, and ideological alignment, even when individuals do not consciously agree with the regime’s values34.

  • This process can make bureaucrats and citizens more effective agents of the regime, normalizing obedience and discouraging resistance.

• Censorship and Control of Information

  • States often censor dissenting voices and restrict access to information that could undermine their authority. By shaping the information environment, regimes prevent the emergence of alternative perspectives and collective action34.

  • Censorship is not only about silencing opposition but also about reinforcing the legitimacy of the dominant narrative.

• Psychological Manipulation and Fear

  • Authoritarian leaders employ tactics such as gaslighting, brainwashing, and fearmongering to instill obedience and suppress independent thought. These methods foster a climate of uncertainty and dependency, making people more susceptible to manipulation5.

  • By channeling collective anxieties and designating scapegoats, power holders maintain control and justify repressive measures.

• Human Cognition and Group Dynamics

  • The human mind is naturally inclined to seek belonging, accept authority, and adopt the beliefs of trusted leaders or groups. Political power exploits these tendencies, using social identity, tribalism, and emotional appeals to secure allegiance and suppress critical thinking6.

  • Dehumanization and “us-versus-them” mentalities are reinforced through political rhetoric, deepening divisions and making dissent psychologically costly7.

• • Neuroscientific research suggests that power activates reward systems in the brain, making it addictive and leading to behaviors such as moral exceptionalism, hypocrisy, and diminished self-reflection among those who wield it89.

Conclusion

The domination of the mind is a subtle but pervasive form of political power. It operates through discourse, information control, psychological manipulation, and socialization, often making overt coercion unnecessary. By shaping what people believe and how they perceive reality, political power secures compliance, suppresses resistance, and perpetuates its own legitimacy15234.

1. https://www.powercube.net/other-forms-of-power/foucault-power-is-everywhere/
2. https://www.filmsforaction.org/articles/how-political-mind-control-works/
3. https://www.annualreviews.org/docserver/fulltext/polisci/25/1/annurev-polisci-051120-013321.pdf?expires=1743490832&id=id&accname=guest&checksum=472A6C11F3C80FD6A39FE1B5A2EF23B0
4. https://www.annualreviews.org/docserver/fulltext/polisci/25/1/annurev-polisci-051120-013321.pdf?expires=1748733411&id=id&accname=guest&checksum=98FA5658C64F4F1DAB48B1979625EFE4
5. https://www.transformingsociety.co.uk/2023/01/27/abuse-of-political-power-is-the-abuse-of-people-when-are-we-going-to-stop-re-electing-dictators/
6. https://thefulcrum.us/bridging-common-ground/psychology-of-politics
7. https://news.virginia.edu/content/your-brain-politics-neuroscience-shapes-our-views
8. https://blog.politics.ox.ac.uk/neurochemistry-power-implications-political-change/
9. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10461512/
10. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/domination/
11. https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/social-sciences/political-domination
12. https://www.jstor.org/stable/jj.21996509
13. https://blog.apaonline.org/2022/03/11/the-psychology-of-political-power-does-power-corrupt-or-is-it-magnetic-to-the-most-corruptible/
14. https://www.politstudies.ru/en/article/5868
15. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_(social_and_political)
16. https://slcc.pressbooks.pub/attenuateddemocracy/chapter/chapter-2/
17. https://www.annualreviews.org/docserver/fulltext/polisci/25/1/annurev-polisci-051120-013321.pdf?expires=1744097409&id=id&accname=guest&checksum=865EACF9BDA375C98480220A81C0A5F6
18. https://whorulesamerica.ucsc.edu/power/class_domination.html
19. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/2158379X.2021.1875307
20. https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/9781503616349-003/html