Soft power
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Soft power is the ability to attract and co-opt, rather than coerce (hard power). Soft power is the ability to shape the preferences of others through appeal and attraction. A defining feature of soft power is that it is non-coercive; the currency of soft power is culture, political values, and foreign policies. Recently, the term has also been used in changing and influencing social and public opinion through relatively less transparent channels and lobbying through powerful political and non-political organizations, and through economic influence. In 2012, Joseph Nye of Harvard University explained that with soft power, "the best propaganda is not propaganda", further explaining that during the Information Age, "credibility is the scarcest resource."
See also
- Hard power
- Sharp power
- Power projection
- Smart power
- Soft Disempowerment
- Power (international relations)
- Power (social and political)
- Cultural hegemony
- Fifth power
- Great power
- Netpolitik
- Power projection
- Intangible asset
- Democratic peace theory
- Public diplomacy
- Social influence