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Bureaucracy: Is It Efficient? Is It Not? Is That The Question?

Uncertainty Reduction: An Ignored Element of Bureaucratic Rationality

Hungarian Institute of Public Administration

Most contemporary scholars regard bureaucracy as an inefficient phenomenon. At the same time, we may find a great number of bureaucratic organizations in the various social spheres. Max Weber, who introduced the concept of bureaucracy into the social sciences, however, was convinced that bureaucracy is superior to any other organizational form and explained its prevalence by the immanent rationality of bureaucratic organizations. In analyzing Weber’s text, the author argues that Weber was mistranslated into English and then misinterpreted. Weber’s term rationality is not at all identical to efficiency. Rationality includes also uncertainty reduction regarding internal organizational procedures as well as outputs. Uncertainty reduction may induce several advantages, which, in several cases, ensure organizational superiority.

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