The Bureaucracy, Its Clientele and Power Relations: A Theoretical Model

As part of a larger empirical analysis of a federal bureaucratic agency, the processes of bureaucratic decision making are viewed in relation to government on the one hand & the public (or clientele) on the other. The theoretical model delineated incorporates such concepts as mobilization of external resources (involving activation of the bureaucratic mechanisms), establishment of interconnections, bureaucratic autonomization, & sustentation & expansion, the latter two being dependent variables. While classic organization theories have measured bureaucratic behavior in terms of efficacy & efficiency, the proposed model focuses on the problems of maintaining & expanding the power positions of individuals, hierarchies, & bureaucratic agencies. It is shown how aspects of a closed political system exacerbate certain features of the bureaucratic system's operational dynamics. Formal mechanisms increase the autonomy of a public agency, but interaction with the clientele often requires informal procedures. Stability & change in the power relations within the bureaucratic machine may be examined on the basis of these processes. Modified HA.