Soft power
Etymology
Coined by the American political scientist Joseph Nye in his 1990 book Bound to Lead and developed in Soft Power (2004). Nye drew the contrast with "hard power" — military and economic coercion — to argue that America’s influence rested heavily on the appeal of its culture and ideals. The term spread quickly into diplomacy, business, and everyday talk about influence without pressure.
noun phrase · /SAWFT POW-er/
The ability to get what you want by attraction and persuasion — through culture, values, and appeal — rather than by force or payment.
What it names
Why a country’s films, universities, or brands can shape the world more durably than its armies, and why being admired is itself a form of leverage.
Example
The museum’s free international fellowships were quiet soft power, building a generation of curators abroad who saw the institution as the center of their field.
Related idea
Hard power coerces or pays; this attracts. Hegemony is the settled dominance that sustained soft power can eventually produce.