weber

Max Weber

Sociologist who focused on meaning, social action, rationalization, religion, authority, and bureaucracy.

Social Action

Action that has meaning for the person performing it and is oriented toward others.

Rationality

Organizing action according to reason, calculation, and efficiency.

Rationalization

The increasing organization of society around calculation, efficiency, rules, predictability, and control.

Substantive Rationality

Efficiency combined with human values, purposes, or motives.

Formal Rationality

Efficiency pursued through rules, calculations, and procedures without necessarily considering human purposes.

Disenchantment

The decline of magical, religious, or traditional explanations as rationalization expands.

Ideal Type

An analytical model representing a pure form of a social phenomenon that does not literally exist in the real world.

Generalization vs. Ideal Type

A generalization is based on data; an ideal type is an analytical construct.

Bureaucracy

A formally organized system based on rules, hierarchy, specialization, and efficiency.

Bureaucrat

A person who works within a bureaucratic system.

Iron Cage

The idea that highly rationalized systems can trap people within rules, calculation, and bureaucratic structures.

Stratification

The organization of society into levels or groups with unequal resources, prestige, or power.

Class

An economic position that affects resources and life chances.

Status

Social prestige, honor, or standing.

Party

An organized group seeking political or social power.

Life Chances

The opportunities and resources available to people based on their social position.

Power

The ability to achieve one's will despite opposition.

Legitimation

The process through which power becomes viewed as justified or legitimate.

Authority

Legitimate or socially accepted power.

Charismatic Authority

Authority based on the perceived extraordinary qualities of a particular person.

Traditional Authority

Authority based on customs and traditions passed down over time.

Rational-Legal Authority

Authority based on formal rules, laws, and procedures.

Routinization of Charisma

The process by which charismatic authority becomes institutionalized, traditionalized, or rationalized.

Protestant Ethic

Weber's analysis of how Protestant religious beliefs could encourage disciplined economic behavior.

Spirit of Capitalism

A cultural orientation toward disciplined, rational, and systematic economic activity.

Secularization

The process through which religious motives or institutions lose influence in aspects of social life.

Correlation

A relationship in which two variables are associated with one another.

Causation

A relationship in which one variable produces a change in another, requiring temporal order and ruling out alternative explanations.

Spurious Association

An apparent relationship between two variables that is actually caused by another variable.

Weber vs. Marx

Weber emphasized ideas, meaning, and rationalization alongside material conditions; Marx emphasized material conditions and class conflict.