POLITICAL SCIENCE

UNIT-3 BUREAUCRACY

SYNOPSIS
 Introduction
 Meaning of bureaucracy
 Types of bureaucracy
 Characteristics of bureaucracy
 Functions of bureaucracy
 Max weber’s model of bureaucracy

INTRODUCTION
 The administrative organ of governance includes the Prime Minister, the
Council of Ministers, and a large committee called the Bureaucracy or
civil servants.
 The separation of powers of the government is made by distribution of
power among three major branches of government namely, the
legislature, the executive, and the judiciary
 The civil service system or bureaucracy has its origins rooted in the times
when the British were ruling over India.

MEANING OF BUREAUCRACY
 A bureaucracy is an organization made up of many departments and
divisions that are administered by lots of people.
 Bureaucracy means arranging a lot of people who are required to work
together. Bureaucracy means “rule by offices”.
 The bureaucrats assign government policy to consider the laws made by
the elected officials and do it practically.

TYPES OF BUREAUCRACY
There are three types of bureaucracy:
Public Bureaucracy:
 Public bureaucracies can have a more diverse membership because they
rely on qualified applicants who have been verified.
 Working with a public bureaucracy is more inclusive, but it may take
more time and resources to manage than with a private bureaucracy.
 Public bureaus also have access to information not shared in private
settings.
Private Bureaucracy:
 The private bureaucracy is a tool, instrument, or machine with separate
and exclusive functions.
 The distinction between public and private bureaucracy, or bureaucracies,
can be best summarized as coming down to who owns them.
 One that is privately owned would be considered a private bureaucracy
whereas one that is publicly owned would be considered a public
bureaucracy.
Hybrid/Mixed forms of Bureaucracy:
 Bureaucracies, while difficult to comprehend in their entirety, can be
broken down into three main categories.
 These categories include formal/informal bureaucracy, rigid/flexible
bureaucracy, and simple/complex bureaucracy.
 Formal/Informal Bureaucracies are characterized by strong bureaucratic
institutions and rules set by government officials or other higher-ups that
regulate organizational members’ behavior.
 They’re stricter than Flexible Bureaucracies but not as strict as Rigid
Bureaucracies.
 Examples of this type of bureaucracy include military organizations,
schools, and large corporations.
 Flexible Bureaucracies allow for some degree of flexibility in the way
they conduct themselves when it comes to following rules and
regulations.
 They have a hierarchy that is loosely defined by supervisors who have
less control over subordinates who have more autonomy over what they
do on a day-to-day basis.

CHARACTERISTICS OF BUREAUCRACY
Bureaucracies are systematic, hierarchical organizations characterized by
bureaucratic red tape and rules. Below, we’ll discuss five main characteristics of
bureaucracies.
1. Hierarchical – Bureaucracies have an ordered structure, typically a clear
hierarchy with individual members working their way up from entry-level
positions to higher levels.
2. Standardized – Bureaucrats typically have strict, standardized
procedures for every aspect of their operations. In this sense, they’re like
machines because they’re predictable and reliable in executing processes.
 3. Predictable – Bureaucracies are also predictably effective at
accomplishing specific tasks because all employees know what is
expected of them.
4. Rules oriented – Finally, bureaucracies rely on internal written rules that
provide instructions for how to complete different tasks as well as
penalties if these instructions aren’t followed correctly.

FUNCTIONS OF BUREAUCRACY
Role of bureaucracy in running the administration:
The bureaucracy has the responsibility to make sure that the administration is
running perfectly without any disturbances. They make the administration
running as per the rules and regulations that are implemented by the
government.
Role of bureaucracy as advisors to political executives:
The bureaucracy advises the political executive for making decisions for the
betterment of government and for smoothly running the government. Political
executives have no knowledge regarding the functions of the government.
Hence these bureaucrats guide them properly because they are highly educated
and are experienced enough. Even the ministers take their advice for the proper
work or utilization of the government policies. These bureaucrats provide
adequate information to the ministers also.
Role in law-making:
Here also they have a major indirect role. All the bills are drafted by them which
the minister needs to submit to the legislation for making the law. The ministers
contact the civil servants for help to provide all the necessary information to the
legislation for the lawmaking.
Role in policy-formulation
The policies that are made need to be included in specific situations. This is a
function of political executives. These political parties collect the data from the
civil servants for implementing those in the policies. These civil servants help
the political executives to identify the merits and demerits of the policies. After
going on all the merits and demerits one by one, the political executive can
choose any policy as the governmental policy.
Role in record-keeping
Bureaucrats maintain and keep governmental records. They collect and
categorize the datas of government activities. They also look on the socio-
economic statistics which are used for public policies and for future
developments.
Judicial work
The development of the arrangement of managerial equity, under which a few
sorts of the cases and questions are chosen by the chief, has additionally been a
wellspring of expanded semi-judicial work of the bureaucracy. The disputes
including the award of grants, licenses, charge concessions, standards and so on
are presently settled by the government employees.

MAX WEBER’S MODEL OF BUREAUCRACY

A German Sociologist, Max Weber, described a theory to operate an
organization effectively which is known as the Bureaucratic management
approach or Weberian Bureaucracy.
He also developed the belief that there must be a fixed hierarchical structure for
an organization and clear rules, regulations, and lines of authority that regulate
it. The bureaucracy of Max Weber has the following attributes:
 Specialization of labour
 A formal set of rules and regulations
 Well-defined hierarchy within the organization
 Impersonality in the application of rules

MAX WEBER’S BUREAUCRATIC FORM – 6 MAJOR PRINCIPLES

Max Weber identified the following six core principles of the bureaucratic form:
1. A Structured Hierarchical Structure: In a bureaucratic organization, each
level governs the level below it. Also, the level below it governs it. The
foundation of central planning and centralized decision making is a
formal hierarchy.
2. Rules-Based Management- To exercise control, the company uses rules.
Therefore, at higher levels, the lower levels effortlessly execute the
decisions made.
3. Organization of Functional Specialties - Specialists do the job. The
company often breaks workers into groups depending on the type of work
they do or the abilities they possess.
4. Up-Focused Or In-Focused: If the organization's purpose is to represent
the stockholders, board, or some other institution that motivated it then it
is up-focused. On the other hand, it is in-focused if the goal is to serve the
company itself and others inside it (like producing income, etc.).
 5. Impersonal - All workers are handled fairly by hierarchical organizations.
They also fairly treat all clients and do not allow individual differences to
affect them.
6. Employment-oriented Professional Qualifications - Selection is based on
technical qualifications and skills as well as employee promotion.

CRITICS OF WEBER
Weber's bureaucratic model was criticised by subsequent social scientists on
various grounds. They are
 It was characterised as "machine theory" due to its over concern with the
formal structure of the
 It was described as a "closed system model" as it did not take into
account in detail the interaction between organisation and
its environment.