Weber Seminar - Summary

4 Fundamental types of social action;
1. Instrumental rational action - Performed due to social status and security factors. Ultimately doing something to further yourself.
2. Value rational action - It is a good thing to do
3. Affectual emotional action - Emotional reason behind it
4. Traditional - what you believe should be done in society. 'Just because'. 


Weber believes there is no absolute knowledge. This could possibly be related to Hegel and the way in which Hegel believed knowledge is the instrument used to get hold of the absolute. 
The first bureaucratic state was the German Empire. The Prussian army was the heart of the state and was also highly bureaucratic. 
A bureaucracy is a rule conducted from a desk/office. The world comes from the French word 'Bureau' meaning desk. 


Weber and Bureaucracy
- Weber was a German socialist and at the time of the German empire people were directed by rules which were impersonally applied. 
- These were staffed by full time professionals who lived off a salary. 
- Credentialism relates to the preoccupation with formal educational qualifications. 
- The 'ideal type' of bureaucracy is ensuring efficient functioning of the organisation. 
- Capitalists seek machinery to enlarge profits
-  Karl Marx had a class interest
- Nietzche - believed we should never be obedient. What we believe is right.  
- Weber said that truth is rationalisation. E.g. going out drinking to meet friends. Ultimately, I see it as kind of the excuse you make to do something. 
- Prussian Bureaucracy - created new jobs and therefore a new class; the middle class.
- Non-teleological idea belonged to Weber
- Weber thinks that you can use a hypothesis in human behaviour not just science - scientific method.
He believes that you can use scientific methods on humans.
- If you create a hierarchy in 1 country then one in another the hypothesis is that you will create a war.
- Weber is a social scientist and this relates to his 4 types of social action shown at the beginning of this post.
- Bureaucratics HAVE to stick to the rules. They get paid a salary to stick by these specific rules.
- The state is a monopoly of legitimate violence. We can not take the violence into our own hands as that is the states job.