ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the authors analyze the two complementary aspects of the functioning of the organizations they have studied. They interpret their data in the light of the theory of bureaucracy—that theory in terms of which sociologists since Max Weber has been considering the processes of organization. Weber had furnished a very brilliant description of the "ideal type" of a bureaucratic organization, and a suggestive analysis of its historical development, that apparently paved the way for a positive value-free sociological analysis. Yet the discussion about bureaucracy is still, to a large extent, the domain of the myths and pathos of ideology. The authors describe that four basic elements seem to be necessary for the stability of the vicious circle they have observed. These are the extent of the development of impersonal rules; the centralization of decisions; strata isolation and concomitant group pressure on the individual; and the development of parallel power relationships around remaining areas of uncertainty.
