 He is perhaps best known for his early work in collaboration with John R. P. French, with whom he developed an analysis of the five bases of social power.Born in Youngstown, Ohio, he received his BA and MA (1948, 1949) in psychology from Ohio State University and his PhD (1953) in social psychology from the University of Michigan.At UCLA, he was also director of the Survey Research Center, director of a training program in health psychology, and chair of the Department of Psychology.