Mikrorationalitäten“ im Verwaltungsalltag: Dargestellt am Beispiel der „Hilfen zur Arbeit“ (§ § 18 ff. BSHG) in einer Sozialverwaltung

In the ongoing debate about the reorganization of the public sector, the public administration is frequently still regarded as an instrument or means for rational action. In contrast to this perspective the article argues for a more precise perception of administrations as complex social systems. Therefore a typology of "alternative" decision rationalities is developed on the basis of empirical studies in a social welfare administration, working in the area of "Hilfen zur Arbeit". These "microrationalities", as they are called in the article, can often work as a substitute for organizational rational action. However, in a next step it is argued that these "microrationalities" are not chosen deliberately by individual actors, but that the choice depends on socially defined "rules of appropriateness". Only if these "alternative" rationalities are taken into consideration, reform processes can be installed that produce the intended outcomes.