Bureaucracy, Administration, and Politics: An Introduction

CONTENTS 1.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................. 1 1.2 Bureaucracy and History: Civilization and Administration ...................................... 2 1.3 Th eoretical Framework ............................................................................................. 4

1.3.1 Meanings of Bureaucracy .............................................................................. 5 1.3.2 Th eoretical Perspectives ................................................................................. 5 1.3.3 Bureaucratic Evil ........................................................................................... 6

1.4 Bureaucratic Politics and Democratic Th eory ........................................................... 7 1.5 Bureaucracy and Development ................................................................................10 1.6 Bureaucracy, Change, and Revolution .................................................................... 12 1.7 Conclusion: Bureaucracy Persists, Beyond Weber ....................................................13 References .........................................................................................................................14

1.1 Introduction Bureaucracy is one of the oldest institutions of government and administration in history. As such, bureaucracy and administration are as old as human civilization, one promoting the other, hence an intimate relationship between civilization and administration. In fact, as an institution of government and administration, bureaucracy has its roots in the ancient world, playing a formidable role in the administration of great empires and civilizations, namely Persian, Chinese, and Roman, with traditions that provided continuity and order to many civilizations and their administrative