A study examined how government administrators in New Zealand construct their professional identities and power relationships, and how this identity is reflected in patterns of discourse and strategies of interaction. Three levels of discourse analysis (speech functions; discourse strategies; and linguistic forms) and their components and interrelationships are distinguished. Data for analysis are drawn from 322 everyday work-related interactions involving 251 individuals (152 women, 99 men) of European, Maori, and other ethnic groups in four government departments. Analysis focused on ways in which language use expresses power or relative status in the workplace. Findings are summarized in two analyses: the range of strategies that superiors use to "do power," and verbal interactions illustrating the effect of workplace power distribution. Excerpts of interactions are included. It is concluded that generalizations about relationships must be treated with caution, and that the discourse that characterizes any interaction reflects not only the particular relationship involved but also the particular goals of the interaction. In addition, in a single interaction, participants may orient to a number of different identities and goals, either simultaneously or at different points in time. Contains 12 references. (MSE)