MaxWeber’sThreeTypesofAuthority

Authority referstoacceptedpower—thatis,powerthatpeopleagreetofollow.Peoplelistentoauthorityfiguresbecausetheyfeelthattheseindividualsareworthyofrespect.Generallyspeaking,peopleperceivetheobjectivesanddemandsofanauthorityfigureasreasonableandbeneficial,ortrue.

Notallauthorityfiguresarepoliceofficers,electedofficialsorgovernmentauthorities.Besidesformaloffices,authoritycanarisefrom traditionandpersonalqualities.EconomistandsociologistMaxWeberrealizedthiswhenheexaminedindividualactionasitrelatestoauthority,aswellaslarge-scalestructuresofauthorityandhowtheyrelatetoasociety’seconomy.Basedonthiswork,Weberdevelopedaclassificationsystem forauthority.Histhreetypesofauthorityaretraditionalauthority,charismaticauthorityandlegal-rationalauthority(Weber1922).

Weberdefinesauthorityaslegitimateformsofdomination,thatis,formsofdominationwhichfollowersorsubordinatesconsidertobelegitimate.Legitimatedoesnotnecessarilyimplyanysenseofrationality,right,ornaturaljustice.Rather,dominationislegitimatewhenthesubordinateaccept,obey,andconsiderdominationtobedesirable,oratleastbearableandnotworthchallenging.Itisnotsomuchtheactionsofthedominantthatcreatethis,butratherthewillingnessofthosewhosubordinatetobelieveinthelegitimacyoftheclaimsofthedominant.

ThephilosopherandsociologistMaxWeberdiscernsthethreetypesofauthorities-Traditional,Legal-Rational,andCharismatic;eachofwhich correspondtoaform ofleadershipthatoperateinacontemporarysociety.Theonethingwhichiscommoninallthethreeauthoritiesis“legitimacy.”Alegitimateauthorityisjustifiedbyboththerulerandtheruled.Let’sdiscussallthethreeauthorities,givenbyMaxWeber-:

TraditionalAuthority

Traditionalauthoritycanbedefinedasthepowerlegitimizedbyrespectforlong-establishedculturalpatterns.Itcomesfrom unwrittenrulesthataremaintainedovertime.Leadersintraditionalauthorityarepeoplewhodependonanestablishedorderortradition.Thisleaderisadominantpersonalityandtheexistingorderinthesocietyentrustshim themandatetorule.Traditionalleadershipisreflectiveofeverydayconductandroutine.Peoplerespecttraditionalauthoritybecause“Ithasalwaysbeenthatway.”

Therightofthekingtoruleisneveropentoanykindofquestions.Peoplefollowingarulerdoingsointheerstwhilehavebestowedthesocietywithcontinuityandorder.It’snotjustthetraditionbutalsothestabilityofsocialorderthatisaccepted.Inapoliticalsystem establishedonthebasisoftraditionalauthority,ancientcustomslegitimizeauthority.

Examples-: Hereditarymonarchies,RomanCatholicChurch,TibetanBuddhism,etc.

DrawbacksofTraditionalAuthority:

Traditionalauthorityisbasedonsomedominantpower.

AccordingtoMaxWeber,allformsofauthoritiesexhibit

somekindofdomination.

Atraditionalleadermightexploitorrelyonprevailing

practices.

Atraditionalauthoritymaysufferfrom thelackofmoral

regularityinthecreationoflegalstandards.

Charismaticauthoritycanbedefinedasthepowerlegitimizedbyexceptional,unusual,andextraordinarypersonalabilitieswhichinspiredevotion andobedience.Weberidentifiedthisextraordinaryattributeas‘Charisma’whereasRobertBierstadtcalleditleadershipandnotanauthorityatall.

CharismaticleadersareseenaspeoplewhoareinspiredbyGodorbyloftyunsocialprinciples.Thecharismaoftheseleadersisenoughandadequatetoinspiretheirfollowersandmaketheirauthorityseem legitimate.

Whileemphasizingtheimportanceoftradition,Webernever

proclaimedthattraditionsareabsolute.Heonlyspecifiedthatthetraditionisaruleandnotanexception,butthereareexceptionsalso.WeberusedthephraseCharismaticauthoritytorefertosuchanexpression.AccordingtoMaxWeber,Charismaticauthoritybelievesinthepersonalandeffectualdevotionofthefollower.Itencompassesthepowerofspeechandmindandthedisplayofheroism.

Itisimportanttonotethatincharismaticauthority,theleaderisbelievedtobemagicalbyemployingvarioustactics.Theleaderdesignsanarmyoftruedevoteestoobtainperpetualsupportfrom thepeople.

Examples- HistoryequipsuswithalistofclassicalexamplesofsuchleaderslikeJesusChrist,MahatmaGandhi,Napoleon,Hitler,Mao,JuliusCaesar,AlexandertheGreat,WinstonChurchill,andmanymore.

DrawbacksofCharismaticAuthority Charismaticauthorityisinherentlyunstableandmostlyshort

lived. Acharismaticleaderholdsamissiontounitehispeople

amidstdifferencesandadversitiestoattainaninsurmountablegoal.

Ithasnorulesortraditionstoguideormonitorsconduct;asitisbasedontheuniquecharacteristicsofanindividual.

Legalauthoritycanbedefinedasabureaucraticauthority,wherepowerislegitimizedbylegallyenactedrulesandregulationssuchasgovernments.Thisform ofauthorityistheonethatisgroundedandclearlydefineslawswithexplicitproceduresthatdefinetheobligationsandrights.Thisislargelyrespectedduetothecompetenceandlegitimacythatlawsandproceduresbestowuponthepeopleintheauthoritativeposition.

Contemporarysocietiesdependonthisform ofauthority;asthecomplexitiesrequiretheemergenceofbureaucracythatembodiessystematizationandorder.Authoritarianscanexercisepoweronlywithinthelegallydefinedboundaries.

AccordingtoWeber,“Legalauthorityrestsintheenactmentanditspuretypeisbestrepresentedbybureaucracy”.Thebasicideaisthatlawscanbechangedandenactedbyformallycorrectprocedures.Thegoverningbodyhereiseitherappointedorelected.

Examples- ElectedGovernments,Police,Courts,etc.

DrawbacksofLegal-Rational

Authority Legal-Rationalauthoritymanifeststhepowerofbureaucracy

overindividuals. Bureaucracymaynotbeabletocompletelyaddressthe

concernsorproblemsofeveryone. Modernsocietiesdependonlegal-rationalauthoritytofigure

outacommongroundtoachieveconsensus,butconsensusbasedonagreementslackflexibilitywhichembodiesthedominanceofbureaucraticmentalityforwhichthegovernmentservicesareoftenaccused.

CONCLUSION

MaxWebbercreatedthemostcommontypologyofauthority.Eachtypeofauthorityislegitimatesinceitinvolvesboth explicitandimplicitconsentofthegoverned.Aclearhierarchyleadstoanefficientorganization,comprisingofalegitimateandstrongrelationshipbetweenthefollowersandleaders.

Weberviewedthefutureasonewhererational-legaltypesofauthoritywouldbecomemoredominant.Whileacharismaticleaderormovementmightemerge,thedominanttendencywasfororganizationstobecomemoreroutinized,rationalandbureaucratic.Itisinthissensethatlegalauthoritycanbe

interpreted.Inmodernsocieties,authorityisinlargepartexercisedonthebasisofbureaucracies.

Sources:

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/144078336600200101?journalCode=josa

http://danawilliams2.tripod.com/authority.html

https://studiousguy.com/max-webers-three-types-of-authority/

https://www.slideshare.net/chandra1020/webers-theory-of-authority

References

Giddens,Anthony, Capitalism andModernSocialTheory:AnAnalysisoftheWritingsofMarx,Durkheim andMaxWeber,Cambridge,CambridgeUniversityPress,1971.

Grabb,EdwardG.,TheoriesofSocialInequality:ClassicalandContemporaryPerspectives,secondedition,Toronto,Holt,RinehartandWinston,1990.

Hadden,RichardW., SociologicalTheory:AnIntroductiontotheClassicalTradition,Peterborough,BroadviewPress,1997.

Ritzer,George, SociologicalTheory,thirdedition,NewYork,McGraw-Hill.

Weber,Max, EconomyandSociety:AnOutlineofInterpretiveSociology,NewYork,BedminsterPress,1968.