ABSTRACT
Political influence is a very controversial subject and it has evoked many different approaches at conceptualization and measurement. The "community power" studies of the 1950s exemplify the bitter controversies which occur. Comparing the influence patterns of politicians and administrators reveals some important differences in all the countries. On the big question of whether elite influence is pyramidal and unitary the answer seems clear. In all the countries those who presumably are at the top of the influence structures in their communities are the elected councilors and party leaders. The cause may lie in the constraints on influence, and on leadership generally, imposed by the structure of local government. There is a 10 to 15 percent differential in proportions of elites with strong influence perceptions for policy areas with high and low power perception percentages. Yet the disjunction is great for all policy areas.
