Hegel's Theory of Modern Bureaucracy

Carl K. Y. Shaw

American Political Science Review, 1992, vol. 86, issue 2, 381-389

Abstract: I make three contentions. First, Hegel's theory of bureaucracy is as comprehensive as Weber's ideal type of bureaucratic organization. I argue this by making a sociological reformulation of Hegel's model and comparing it with the Weberian paradigm. Second, Hegel adapts the Aristotelian category of practical judgment in characterizing the bureaucratic activity as subsumption. This characterization is contrary to the dominant view that bureaucracy embodies mere instrumental rationality and solves some difficulties in Hegel's political thought. Third, Hegel's conceptualization can contribute to a liberal theory of bureaucracy that apprehends modern political reality more adequately than the skepticism of classical liberals and contemporary libertarians about bureaucratic organization.

Date: 1992
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