Kanter's Structural Theory of Organizational Empowerment (1977, 1993) is the framework that explains the concepts and terms associated with empowerment.
Kanter defined power as the ability to mobilize material and human resources to achieve organizational goals, and argued that empowering work environments ensure that employees have access to information, resources, support, and opportunities to learn and grow. Access to work empowerment structures can be enhanced by specific job characteristics and work relationships that promote effective communications (Kanter, 1977, 1993). Kanter's (1993) Theory of Structural Empowerment stated that opportunity and power in organizations were critical elements of empowerment. Empowerment is needed for employees to be successful and effective within the organization. Kanter (1993) noted that employee work behaviors were a result of workplace conditions and situations and not from personal characteristics. This theory is appropriate for this study because it focuses on workplace conditions and empowerment.