Bureaucracy and democracy. A critical reading of Alvin W. Gouldner's book Patterns of Industrial Bureaucracy
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 7770355 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Anna Vogel (0000-0002-9866-1223, University of Washington, corresponding author), Ann Vogel |
| Year | 1995 |
| Volume | 36 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 358-373 |
| Publication date | 1995-11-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | European Journal of Sociology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0003-9756 • E-ISSN: 1474-0583 |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1017/s0003975600007591 |
| OpenAlex | W1989608671 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 5 |
In Patterns of Industrial Bureaucracy, Alvin W. Gouldner has developed a conception of rational domination which is different from that developed by Max Weber. Gouldner argues that a democratic variation of rational domination (representative bureaucracy) can be more efficient tban the authoritarian variation, and that, accordingly, the ‘iron cage of rationalisation’ is not inevitable. I will show that Gouldner—who is sociologically driven—contradicts Weber on the basis of an erroneous translation and a poor understanding of the concept of bureaucracy. Thus his critique in no way undermines the Weberian typology of domination
Authoritarianism · Bureaucracy · Democracy · Economics · Management · Political science · Politics · Positive economics · Rationalisation · Rationalization (economics) · Sociology · Typology · Anthropology · Law · Mathematics · Political Economy and Marxism
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |