Forum Essay: A Debt Unpaid—Reinterpreting Max Weber on Bureaucracy

Gale, Scott A.; Hummel, Ralph P.

doi:10.1080/10841806.2003.11029411

Cited by 13 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…The striking similarities between Weber's and Hegel's writings on public administration have been widely stressed in the literature (Gale and Hummel 2003, 409–18; Jackson 1986, 139–57; Knapp 1986, 599–606; Shaw 1992, 381–89; Spicer 2004a, 97–102; Welty 1976). Even though Hegel is not cited directly in Weber's vast work, we know that many elements of the Hegelian philosophy of history and of law were brought to Weber through Karl Marx (Knapp 1986, 599–604).…”

Section: Hegel As the Missing Linkmentioning

confidence: 98%

Weber, Wilson, and Hegel: Theories of Modern Bureaucracy

Sager

Rosser

2009

Public Administration Review

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Convergence between Woodrow Wilson's and Max Weber's thought, as well as their differences with regard to the politics–administration dichotomy, can be ascribed to the Hegelian tradition of public administrative theory. On the one hand, Wilson was strongly influenced by Georg W. F. Hegel. On the other hand, there is an empirical connection between Hegel and Weber. Both shared a consciousness of the German bureaucratic tradition based on Hegel's Philosophy of Right. These insights have important methodological and theoretical implications for the contemporary comparative study of public administration.

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Section: Hegel As the Missing Linkmentioning

confidence: 98%

Weber, Wilson, and Hegel: Theories of Modern Bureaucracy

Sager

Rosser

2009

Public Administration Review

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“…Answering the call from Gale and Hummel (2003) to more fully understand Weber's ideal-type method, one must at least reference his methodology of social science, his interpretation of social action, and the epistemological commitments they infer. From this foundation, explication of the ideal-type method itself makes more sense.…”

Section: Understanding Weber's Ideal-type Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There is renewed interest in Max Weber's work in recent public administration literature (Alkadry, 2004;Bartels, 2009;Gale & Hummel, 2003;Hummel, 2006;Raadschelders & Stillman, 2007;Rutgers & Schreurs, 2004Thorne & Kouzmin, 2007;Tijsterman & Overeem, 2008). It is clear that Weber's ideal-type of bureaucracy has had enormous influence on administrative theory, and his ideal-type model of authority has inspired organizational behavior and theory.…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Thus, he continues to figure prominently as a scholar of interest in public administration. Gale and Hummel (2003) suggest that in addition to their own exploration of Weber's possible Hegelian ontological origins, it would be beneficial to explore his understanding of social action, his methodology of social science, and his ideal-type method. Like others (Migdal, 2001), they suggest that Weber's work has possibly suffered from a long history of "misreading" (Gale & Hummel, 2003, p. 410).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Revisiting the (Lost) Art of Ideal-Typing in Public Administration

Stout

2010

Administrative Theory & Praxis

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Despite a renewed interest in Max Weber's work in public administration literature, there has been little discussion of his ideal-type method as a useful tool for contemporary theory building and subsequent research. The article challenges the field to revisit the art of ideal-typing as an important methodology when applied accurately, distinguishing ideal-typing from other forms of classification. It revisits Weber's original (translated) essays on methodology, clarifying the specific steps involved in generating and utilizing ideal-type models and illustrating each step with Weber's ideal-type models as well as a recent study that employed the method to generate an ideal-type model of public administration theory based on logics of democratic legitimacy. Both applications make a case for the method's appropriateness for public administration and its potential usefulness in generating robust theoretical models from which to develop hypotheses and conduct a variety of both mental experiments and empirical research.

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“…Rather, what is necessary is explication of the ways in which Weber's ideal type of bureaucracy can be used to study modern phenomena in public administration. Therefore, the answer to the recent call for rethinking Weber "on his own terms" (Alkadry, 2004;Gale & Hummel, 2003) is the development of an analytical framework from Weber's ideal type of bureaucracy.…”

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confidence: 99%

The Disregard for Weber'sHerrschaft

Bartels

2009

Administrative Theory & Praxis

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The great relevance of Max Weber's ideal type of bureaucracy for understanding modern public administration is insufficiently acknowledged. Critical examination of the claims made to support "new conventional wisdoms" in the study of public administration reveals a remarkable similarity in the arguments made against Weber's ideal type of bureaucracy. The currently fashionable public-values approaches replicate neoliberal arguments that downplay bureaucracy to conquer a place in the field. Such dogmatism leads to neglect of the ways in which modern Herrschaft (domination) affects individual freedom. This article clarifies how the relationship between Herrschaft and individual freedom is central to Weber's ideal type of bureaucracy and how this perspective is still useful to understand modern phenomena such as privatization and deliberative democracy. It is concluded that the study of public administration would gain from the public-values approaches utilizing their potential to treat Weber on his own terms rather than replicating neoliberal mistakes.

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Forum Essay: A Debt Unpaid—Reinterpreting Max Weber on Bureaucracy

Cited by 13 publications

References 7 publications

Weber, Wilson, and Hegel: Theories of Modern Bureaucracy

Weber, Wilson, and Hegel: Theories of Modern Bureaucracy

Revisiting the (Lost) Art of Ideal-Typing in Public Administration

The Disregard for Weber'sHerrschaft

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