JOBKEY Foreign Policy

UNIVERSITY Analysis
Ch.3: Bureaucratic
Foreign Policy
Analysis

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 Introduction

• The term bureaucracy refers to a complex

organization that has multilayered
systems and processes. The systems
and processes that are put in place
effectively make decision-making slow.
They are designed to maintain uniformity
and control within the organization.

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 Objectives

• At the end of the lesson the student should

be able to:-
• Understand the meaning and definition of
bureaucracy
• Learn the bureaucratic Theory and legal
responsibility
• Know the advantage and disadvatage of
bureaucracy
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 Meaning

• The term bureaucracy, in the mid-18th

century by the French philosophe Vincent
de Gournay, is derived from the
French bureau, meaning “writing
desk,” and -cratie, meaning
“government.”

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 Meaning A

• bureaucracy n.
• plural bureaucracies
1 a a body of non-elective government officials
b:an administrative policy-making group
2 government characterized by specialization of
functions, adherence to fixed rules, and a
hierarchy of authority
3 a system of administration marked by officialism,
red tape, and proliferation
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 B.

• The dictionary meaning of bureaucracy is a

system of government in which most
decisions are taken by state officials rather
than by elected representatives.

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 Definition

• Bureaucracy definition: “Bureaucracy is an
organisational structure that is
characterised by many rules, standardised
processes, procedures and requirements,
number of desks, meticulous division of
labour and responsibility, clear hierarchies
and professional, almost impersonal
interactions between employees”.
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 Bureaucratic Theory and legal
responsibility

• According to the Max Weber theory, three

types of power can be found in
organizations; traditional power,
charismatic power and legal power. 

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 Traditional power
• As the name implies, traditional authority
is power that is rooted in traditional, or
long-standing, beliefs and practices of a
society. It exists and is assigned to
particular individuals because of that
society's customs and traditions.

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 Charismatic power
•  A type of power legitimated by perceived
extraordinary characteristics that inspires
devotion and obedience from followers.
• Charismatic authority is power
legitimized by a leader's exceptional
personal qualities, which inspire loyalty
and obedience from followers.

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  Legal power

• A legal power refers
to the ability of a legal
subject to achieve an
intended legal effect ·
A legal power is
attributed by positive
law 

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 Max Weber’s six characteristics

• The Max Weber theory for bureaucratic management

points to six principles or characteristics. Below is a more
detailed explanation of the bureaucratic management
principles.
1. The 6 bureaucracy characteristics are:
2. Task specialisation (Specialization and Division of Labor)
3. Hierarchical layers of authority Formal selection
4. Rules and requirements
5. Impersonal (Impersonality and Personal Indifference)
6. Career orientation
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 ADVANTAGES AND
DISADVANTAGES

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 Advantages

1. Creativity thrives within a bureaucracy.

2. Job security is provided.
3. It discourages favoritism.
4. A bureaucracy centralizes power.
5. It encourages specialization.
6. Best practices are created.
7. It creates predictability.
8. It provides a foundation for scalability.
9. Mergers and acquisitions can be completed quickly and
easily.
10. It is easy to fit into a bureaucracy.

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 Disadvantages

1. There is no emphasis on creating additional competencies.

2.  It fosters a structure that doesn’t create true productivity
3. Expenditures dictate actions.
4. It is a battery for boredom.
5. There is less freedom to act within a bureaucracy.
6. The potential of inefficiency is as high as the potential for
efficiency.
7.  It is difficult to maintain high morale within a bureaucracy.
8.  It reduces the opportunity to quickly adapt to changing
circumstances.
9. A bureaucracy creates massive wage gaps.
10. Inefficiencies are difficult to change.
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 Characteristics and of
bureaucracy

• Bureaucracies have four key

characteristics:
1. A clear hierarchy
2. specialization
3. A division of labor
4. and a set of formal rules, or standard
operating procedures. 

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 Foreign policy analysis

• Foreign policy analysis (FPA) is a branch

of political science dealing with
theory development and empirical
study regarding the processes and
outcomes of foreign policy. FPA is the
study of the management of external
relations and activities of state.

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 Models of foreign policy
making

• Rational Actor Model. The most widely

cited foreign policy analysis approach is the
rational actor model.
• Bureaucratic Politics Model.
• Organizational Process Model.
• Inter-Branch Politics Model.
• Political Process Model.

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 Bureaucracy and foreign
policy
• Bureaucratic politics approach, theoretical approach to public policy that
emphasizes internal bargaining within the state.
• The bureaucratic politics approach argues that policy outcomes result from a
game of bargaining among a small, highly placed group of governmental
actors. These actors come to the game with varying preferences, abilities,
and positions of power.
• Participants choose strategies and policy goals based on different ideas of
what outcomes will best serve their organizational and personal interests.
Bargaining then proceeds through a pluralist process of give-and-take that
reflects the prevailing rules of the game as well as power relations among
the participants.
• Because this process is neither dominated by one individual nor likely to
privilege expert or rational decisions, it may result in suboptimal outcomes
that fail to fulfill the objectives of any of the individual participants.

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