A Cross-Country Study of the Relationship between Weberian Bureaucracy and Government Performance

Abstract

This paper challenges the long-term criticism of the efficiency of the Weberian model of bureaucracy, on the hypothesis that its performance or competitiveness might be context specific, as what works best in some bureaucratic settings is unlikely to work to the same degree in others. To perform this assessment, this study analyzes relationships between characteristics of the Weberian model of bureaucracy and government performance in nations possessing different levels of democratic development. The key finding of this research is that the Weberian characteristic of bureaucratic professionalism is most strongly and positively associated with good government performance in nations where democracy is less developed. This can have special implications for developing countries, where democracy is usually not well established and furnishing good governance with a well-functioning bureaucracy is an urgent goal for effective implementation of development programs.