Conference authority

Can be derived from three main sources: 1. Institutional or formal authority based essentially on the power of patronage or sponsorship -"those who pay the piper call the tune".<2. Personal, "authentic" authority based on knowledge, and experience. The authority of the expert consultant, and equally the "local person".

3. Group or corporate authority based on the actual consensus of the participants in the whole conference.

4. Heterogenic, "absolute" authority, based on reference to super-mundane or divine principles or personages.

5. Hierarchical, aristocratic authority based on longevity and earned or granted status within the group.