Max Weber (1864-1920)

NOTE:This presentation is based on the theories of Max Weber as presented in his books listed in the bibliography. A complete summary of Weber’s theories (as well as the theories of other macrotheorists)can be found in Macrosociology: TheStudy of Sociocultural Systems, by Frank W.Elwell.

Action and Agency

• SOCIAL ACTION• MAX WEBER CONCEIVED

OF SOCIOLOGY AS ACOMPREHENSIVE SCIENCE OF

SOCIAL ACTION.• HE SAID THERE ARE FOUR

TYPES:• ZWECKRATIONAL• WERTRATIONAL• AFFECTIVE• TRADITIONAL

• How do we exude power? Why? When? Contextual

• Politics is making a decision for a group of people. Who makes decisions for you?

ZWECKRATIONAL

• GOAL ORIENTED RATIONAL BEHAVIOR. ACTION IN WHICH BOTH THE GOAL AND THE MEANS ARE RATIONALLY CHOSEN. YOU HAVE A GOAL,YOU TAKE RATIONAL STEPS TO ACHIEVE IT. ANOTHER NAME FOR THIS IS

• “TECHNOCRATIC THINKING.”• (Examples: getting a degree, winning a match,

finding love)

WERTRATIONAL

VALUE-ORIENTED RATIONALITY IS CHARACTERIZED BY STRIVING FOR A GOAL, WHICH IN ITSELF MAY NOT BE RATIONAL, BUTWHICH IS NONETHELESS PURSUED THROUGHRATIONAL MEANS.

AFFECTIVE

ACTION THAT IS ANCHORED IN THE EMOTIONAL STATE OF THE ACTOR RATHER THAN IN THE RATIONAL WEIGHING OF MEANS AND ENDS.

TRADITIONAL

ACTION GUIDED BY CUSTOMARY HABITS OFTHOUGHT, BY RELIANCE ON THE "ETERNALYESTERDAY."

SOCIAL ACTION

WEBER WAS PRIMARILY CONCERNED WITH MODERN WESTERN SOCIETY, IN WHICH, AS HE SAW IT, BEHAVIOR HAD COME TO BE DOMINATED INCREASINGLY BY GOAL-ORIENTED RATIONALITY.

What does this mean?

The Ideal Type

AN IDEAL TYPE IS AN ANALYTICAL CONSTRUCT THAT SERVES THE SOCIAL INVESTIGATOR AS A MEASURING ROD TO ASCERTAIN THE SIMILARITIES AS WELL AS DEVIATIONS IN CONCRETE CASES.

This is a measuring rod

• THE IDEAL TYPE• THE IDEAL TYPE INVOLVES

AN ACCENTUATION OF THE "LOGICALLY CONSISTENT“ INSTITUTION. IT IS A LOGICALLY PRECISE AND COHERNET WHOLE, THAT CAN NEVER BE FOUND AS SUCH IN REALITY

What would be the ideal type utopian world.

Ideal Capitalism

PRIVATE OWNERSHIP OF ALL POTENTIALLYPROFITABLE ACTIVITIES INDIVIDUAL ACTORS SEEKING TO MAXIMIZE THEIR PROFIT COMPETITION BETWEEN INDIVIDUALS AND FIRMSGOVERNMENT KEEPS ITS HANDS OUT OF THE MARKETPLACE, OR LAISSEZ FAIRE.

What is the opposite of this? Other ways?

Weber on bureaucracy? The Future? Was he right?BUREAUCRATIC COORDINATION OF HUMANACTIONS IS THE DISTINCTIVE MARK OF MODERN SOCIAL STRUCTURE

IDEAL BUREAUCRACY

HIERARCHYIMPERSONALITYWRITTEN RULES OF CONDUCTACHIEVEMENTSPECIALIZED DIVISION OF LABOREFFICIENCY

AuthorityAll Stable Nation-States protect Citizens Coercive Power invites resistance

TYPES OF AUTHORITY:

RATIONAL-LEGALTRADITIONALCHARISMATIC

Materialism/Commodity Fetishism/Individualism

Remember Durkheim and Berger here. What would they say about this?

IDEALISM-MATERIALISM

THERE IS NO PRE-ESTABLISHED LINKAGEBETWEEN THE CONTENT OF AN IDEA AND THEMATERIAL INTERESTS OF THOSE WHO BECOME ITS CHAMPION, BUT AN "ELECTIVE AFFINITY" MAY ARISE BETWEEN THE TWO.

Max Weber’s classic bookTell me what you know about this?

American Protestants

PROTESTANT ETHIC

THE PROBLEMS POSED BY MODERN SOCIETYWERE FOREMOST IN WEBER'S MIND, AND INTHIS CONNECTION HE CONCEIVED THE SHIFTFROM TRADITIONAL TO RATIONAL ACTION. HE MAINTAINED THAT THE RATIONALIZATION OF ACTION CAN ONLY BE REALIZED WHENTRADITIONAL WAYS OF LIFE ARE ABANDONED

PROTESTANT ETHIC

THE PROTESTANT ETHIC BROKE THE HOLD OF TRADITION WHILE IT ENCOURAGED MEN TO APPLY THEMSELVES RATIONALLY TO THEIRWORK. WHILE WBER MAINTAINED THATTHERE WERE SEVERAL MATERIAL CAUSES TO THE RISE OF CAPITALISM, IDEAS ANDIDEOLOGIES PLAYED A ROLE

BUREAUCRACY:DYSFUNCTIONS

WEBER WAS VERY CONCERNED ABOUT THE IMPACT THAT BUREAUCRATIZATION HAD ON HUMAN CULTURE. HE NOTED SEVERAL DYSFUNCTIONS:

OLIGARCHYRATIONALITYDEHUMANIZATIONIRRATIONALITY FACTOR

Oligarchy

• How does unregulated power cause social problems such as poverty, homelessness and drug addiction?

OLIGARCHY

BY ITS VERY NATURE BUREAUCRACY GENERATESAN ENORMOUS DEGREE OF UNREGULATED AND OFTEN UNPERCEIVED SOCIAL POWER.BUREAUCRACY TENDS TO RESULT IN OLIGRACHY, OR RULE BY THE FEW—BY OFFICIALS AT THE TOP OF THE ORGANIZATION.

OLIGARCHY

WEBER POINTED OUT THAT THE TRENDTOWARD GREATER LIBERTY IN MODERNSOCIETIES REQUIRES BUREAUCRATIZATIONOF SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS.MODERN DEMOCRACY, THROUGH THE VOTE,HAS A CERTAIN INFLUENCE OVER THE ELITESWHO WILL RULE THEM, BUT THERE CANNOTBE FULL PARTICIPATORY DEMOCRACY.

"THE MOST PERVASIVE FEATURE THATDISTINGUISHES CONTEMPORARY LIFE IS THATIT IS DOMINATED BY LARGE, COMPLEX, ANDFORMAL ORGANIZATIONS...

RATIONALIZATION

RATIONALIZATION REFERS TO THE INCREASINGDOMINANCE OF ZWECKRATIONAL IN MODERNLIFE. THERE ARE THREE CHARACTERISTICS:

EFFICIENCYCALCULABILITYDEMYSTIFICATION

EfficiencyEFFICIENCY REFERS TO THE DRIVE FOR EFFICIENCY BY ALLFORMAL SOCIAL ORGANIZATIONS. THIS SEARCH FOR THE MOST EFFICIENT MEANS OF ATTAINING A GOAL HAS BECOME A MAJORFORCE IN BOTH CAPITALIST ANDGOVERNMENT ORGANIZATION.

Efficiency in the modes of production, in food, cars, meat and minds.

CalculabilityREFERS TO THE NEED FOR PREDICTABILITY AND ORDER IN SOCIAL LIFE. DATA SEEMINGLY TAKES ON A LIFE OF ITS OWN, THE REIFICATION OF NUMBERS AND STATISTICSBECOMES ALMOST AS IMPORTANT AS REALITYITSELF

McDonaldization and the notion of monochronic time. “Time is money”

DEMYSTIFICATION

DEMYSTIFICATION MEANS THE ELIMINATION OF SPIRITUAL MEANING AND MORAL SIGNIFICANCE FROM SOCIAL LIFE AND THEIR REPLACEMENT BY SYSTEMATIC, LOGICAL, ANDREASONABLE ELEMENTS.

DEMYSTIFICATION

THE MODERN WORLD HAS BEEN DESERTED BYTHE GODS. MAN HAS CHASED THEM AWAYAND HAS MADE CALCULABLE AND PREDICTABLE WHAT IN AN EARLIER AGE HADBEEN GOVERNED BY HIS GRACE.

RATIONALIZATION

BUREAUCRACIES ARE BUILT ON THE PRINCIPLES OF EFFICIENCY AND CALCULABILITY. THEYPROGRESSIVELY REPLACE TRADITIONAL SOCIAL ORGANIZATIONS WITH RATIONALORGANIZATIONS DESIGNED TO PERFORM LIKE MACHINES.

RATIONALIZATION

TO BECOME INDUSTRIALIZED IS TO BECOME RATIONALIZED, A PROCESS AFFECTING EVERYAREA OF SOCIETY, THE MOST PUBLIC AND THE MOST PRIVATE, THE STATE AND THEECONOMY AS WELL AS THE REALTIONS OFMARIAGE, FAMILY, AND PERSONAL FRIENDSHIPS.

RATIONALIZATION

THE RESULT IS A SOCIETY THAT IS CONSTANTLY QUESTIONING TRADITIONAL WAYS, ABSOLUTEVALUES, AND CONSTANTLY DEVISING MORE RATIONAL WAYS TO ACHIEVE DESIRED ENDS.

DEHUMANIZATIONAS BUREAUCRACIES SATISFY, DELIGHT, ANDSATIATE US WITH THEIR OUTPUT OF GOODSAND SERVICES, THEY ALSO SHAPE OURMENTALITY, THEY DEFINE OUR VERYHUMANITY.

"THE CALCULABILTIY OF DECISION-MAKING...ISMORE FULLY REALIZED THE MORE THE

BUREAUCRACY 'DEPERSONALIZES' ITSELF...

Dehumanization

ULTIMATELY, RATIONALIZATION MUST LEAD TODEHUMANIZATION—THE ELIMINATION OF CONCERN FOR HUMAN VALUES

IRRATIONALITY FACTOR:

BUREAUCRACY IS NOT RATIONAL IN THE SENSE OF THE MORAL ACCEPTABILITY OF ITS GOALS OR THE MEANS USED TO ACHIEVE THEM

IRRATIONALITY FACTORTHE PROBLEM IS FURTHER COMPOUNDED BYTHE CORRESPONDING WEAKENING OF MANYTRADITIONAL INSTITUTIONS OF FAMILY,COMMUNITY, AND RELIGION—WHICH SERVEDTO BIND PRE-INDUSTRIAL MAN TO THEINTERESTS OF THE GROUPFINALLY, RATIONALIZATION CAUSES THEWEAKENING OF TRADITIONAL AND RELIGIOUSMORAL AUTHORITY--THE VALUES OFEFFICIENCY PREDOMINATE

IRRATIONALITY FACTOR WEBER'S VIEWS ABOUT THE INESCAPABLE RATIONALIZATION AND BUREAUCRATIZATIONOF THE WORLD HAVE OBVIOUS SIMILARITIESTO MARX'S NOTION OF ALINEATION

WEBER BELIEVED THAT THE ALIENATIONDOCUMENTED BY MARX HAD LITTLE TO DOWITH CAPITALISM, BUT WAS A CONSEQUENCE OF INDUSTRIALISM AND BUREAUCRACY

WEBER ARGUED THAT IN ALL RELEVANTSPHERES OF MODERN SOCIETY MEN COULDNO LONGER ENGAGE IN SOCIALLYSIGNIFICANT ACTION UNLESS THEY JOINED ALARGE-SCALE ORGANIZATION

THEY WOULD BE ADMITTED INTO THISORGANIZATION ONLY UPON THE CONDITIONTHAT THEY SACRIFICED THEIR PERSONALDESIRES TO THE IMPERSONAL GOALS ANDPROCEDURES THAT GOVERNED THE WHOLE

REPUTED LAST WORDS OFMAX WEBER:

“THE TRUTH IS THE TRUTH."

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Elwell, F. (2009), Macrosociology: The Study ofSociocultural Systems. Lewiston: Edwin Mellen Press.

Weber, M. (1962). Basic Concepts in Sociology by Max Weber. (H. Secher, Ed., & H. Secher, Trans.) New York: The Citadel Press.

Weber, M. (1921/1968). Economy and Society. (G. Roth, C. Wittich, Eds., G. Roth, & C. Wittich, Trans.) New York: Bedminster Press.

Weber, M. (1946/1958). Essays in Sociology. In M. Weber, H. Gerth, & C. W. Mills (Eds.), From Max Weber. NewYork: Oxford University Press.