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| ==Application of Weber's theories== | ==Application of Weber's theories== | ||
| Weber’s model of charismatic leadership giving way to institutionalization is endorsed by several academic sociologists, such as ]. Barker discusses that in several new religious movements there is often a founder or leader who wields charismatic authority and who is believed to have some special powers or knowledge. She |
Weber’s model of charismatic leadership giving way to institutionalization is endorsed by several academic sociologists, such as ]. Barker discusses that in several new religious movements there is often a founder or leader who wields charismatic authority and who is believed to have some special powers or knowledge. She asserts that almost by definition, charismatic leaders are unpredictable, for they are not bound tradition or rules. Such leaders may be accorded by the followers the right to pronounce on all aspects of their lifes. In those cases, Barker asserts a warning when the leader lacks any accountability and there is an authority structure requiring unquestioning obedience and encouraging a growing dependency upon the movement for material, spiritual and social resources. <ref>]. ''New Religious Movements: A Practical Introduction'' (1990), Bernan Press, ISBN 0113409273</ref>. ] asserts that not all new religious movements have charismatic leaders, and that there are differences in the hegemonic styles among those movements that do. <ref>] ''Unrecognized charisma? A study and comparison of four charismatic leaders: Charles Taze Russell, Joseph Smith, L Ron Hubbard, Swami Prabhupada.'' Paper presented at the 2001 International Conference The Spiritual Supermarket: Religious Pluralism in the 21st Century, organised by INFORM and ] (London, April 19-22, 2001). </ref> | ||
| ], an ]n psychologist who wrote a dissertation about charisma, asserts that criticisms of Weber's theory have led to significant modification of some aspects, but not its main concepts, had eleven charismatic leaders to fill in a psychometric test, which he called the ] and found them as a group quite ordinary. Following the ] ], Oakes argues that charismatic leaders exhibit traits of ] and also argues that they display an extraordinary amount of energy, accompanied by an inner clarity unhindered by the anxieties and guilt that afflict more ordinary people. He did however not fully follow Weber's framework of charismatic authority.<ref>Oakes, Len: ''Prophetic Charisma: The Psychology of Revolutionary Religious Personalities'', 1997, ISBN 0815603983</ref> | ], an ]n psychologist who wrote a dissertation about charisma, asserts that criticisms of Weber's theory have led to significant modification of some aspects, but not its main concepts, had eleven charismatic leaders to fill in a psychometric test, which he called the ] and found them as a group quite ordinary. Following the ] ], Oakes argues that charismatic leaders exhibit traits of ] and also argues that they display an extraordinary amount of energy, accompanied by an inner clarity unhindered by the anxieties and guilt that afflict more ordinary people. He did however not fully follow Weber's framework of charismatic authority.<ref>Oakes, Len: ''Prophetic Charisma: The Psychology of Revolutionary Religious Personalities'', 1997, ISBN 0815603983</ref> | ||
Revision as of 17:30, 22 January 2006
The sociologist Max Weber defined charismatic authority, also called charismatic domination, or charismatic leadership, as "resting on devotion to the exceptional sanctity, heroism or exemplary character of an individual person, and of the normative patterns or order revealed or ordained by him". Charismatic authority is one of three forms of authority laid out in Weber's tripartite classification of authority, the other two being traditional authority and rational-legal authority. The concept has acquired wide usage among sociologists.
Characteristics
Charismatic authority is 'power legitimized on the basis of a leader's exceptional personal qualities or the demonstration of extraordinary insight and accomplishment, which inspire loyalty and obedience from followers' . As such, it rests almost entirely on the leader; the absence of that leader for any reason can lead to the authority's power dissolving.
Weber defined charisma as "a certain quality of an individual personality, by virtue of which s/he is 'set apart' from ordinary people and treated as endowed with supernatural, superhuman, or at least specifically exceptional powers or qualities. These are such as are not accessible to the ordinary person, but are regarded as of div
Due to its idiosyncratic nature and lack of formal organization, charismatic authority depends much more strongly on the perceived legitimacy of the authority than Weber’s other forms of authority. For instance, a charismatic leader in a religious context might require an unchallenged belief that the leader has been touched by God, in the sense of a guru or prophet. However, should the strength of this belief fade, the power of the charismatic leader can fade quickly, which is one of the ways in which this form of authority shows itself to be unstable. In contrast to the current popular use of the term charismatic leader, Weber saw charismatic authority not so much as character traits of the charismatic leader but as a relationship between the leader and his followers.
Note that according to Weber, a charismatic leader does not have to be a positive force; thus, both Winston Churchill and Adolf Hitler could be reasonably considered charismatic leaders.
Routinizing charisma
Charismatic authority almost always evolves in the context of examples of traditional or rational-legal authority which provide forms and boundaries, but by its nature tends to challenge currently accepted forms of authority and thus is often seen as revolutionary. However, the constant challenge that charismatic authority presents to older forms of authority must eventually either subside or be incorporated into the society. The way in which this happens is called routinization.
Routinization is the process by which ‘charismatic authority is succeeded by a bureaucracy controlled by a rationally established authority or by a combination of traditional and bureaucratic authority’ (Turney, Beeghley, and Powers, 1995 cited in Kendal et al. 2000). For example, the Prophet Muhammad was succeeded by the traditional authority and structure of Islam, a clear example of routinization.
Some leaders may employ various tools to create and extend their charismatic authority, for example utilizing the science of public relations.
As in the example of Islam, a religion which evolves its own priesthood and establishes a set of laws and rules is likely to lose its charismatic character and move towards another type of authority upon the removal of that leader.
In politics, charismatic rule is often found in various authoritarian states, autocracies, dictatorships and theocracies. In order to help to maintain their charismatic authority, such regimes will often establish a vast personality cult, which can be seen as an attempt to lend legitimacy by an appeal to other forms of authority. When the leader of such a state dies or leaves office and a new charismatic leader does not appear, such regime is likely to fall shortly afterwards if it is unable to survive without the personal attraction of the ruler, or it may become routinized as described above.
Application of Weber's theories
Weber’s model of charismatic leadership giving way to institutionalization is endorsed by several academic sociologists, such as Eileen Barker. Barker discusses that in several new religious movements there is often a founder or leader who wields charismatic authority and who is believed to have some special powers or knowledge. She asserts that almost by definition, charismatic leaders are unpredictable, for they are not bound tradition or rules. Such leaders may be accorded by the followers the right to pronounce on all aspects of their lifes. In those cases, Barker asserts a warning when the leader lacks any accountability and there is an authority structure requiring unquestioning obedience and encouraging a growing dependency upon the movement for material, spiritual and social resources. . George D. Chryssides asserts that not all new religious movements have charismatic leaders, and that there are differences in the hegemonic styles among those movements that do.
Len Oakes, an Australian psychologist who wrote a dissertation about charisma, asserts that criticisms of Weber's theory have led to significant modification of some aspects, but not its main concepts, had eleven charismatic leaders to fill in a psychometric test, which he called the adjective checklist and found them as a group quite ordinary. Following the psychoanalyst Heinz Kohut, Oakes argues that charismatic leaders exhibit traits of narcissism and also argues that they display an extraordinary amount of energy, accompanied by an inner clarity unhindered by the anxieties and guilt that afflict more ordinary people. He did however not fully follow Weber's framework of charismatic authority.
See also
- Authority
- Charisma
- Guru
- King
- Leader, Leadership
- List of charismatic leaders
- Prophet
- Priest
- Statesman
- The Three Types of Legitimate Rule
References
- Kendall, Diana, Jane Lothian Murray, and Rick Linden. Sociology in our time (2nd ed.), 2000. Scarborough, On: Nelson, 438-439.
- Weber, Maximillan. Economy and Society (1978) p.241. University of California Press. Originally published in 1922 under the title Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft chapter III, § 10
- Barker, E. New Religious Movements: A Practical Introduction (1990), Bernan Press, ISBN 0113409273
- Chryssides, George D. Unrecognized charisma? A study and comparison of four charismatic leaders: Charles Taze Russell, Joseph Smith, L Ron Hubbard, Swami Prabhupada. Paper presented at the 2001 International Conference The Spiritual Supermarket: Religious Pluralism in the 21st Century, organised by INFORM and CESNUR (London, April 19-22, 2001). Available online
- Oakes, Len: Prophetic Charisma: The Psychology of Revolutionary Religious Personalities, 1997, ISBN 0815603983
External links
- Charisma by Thomas Robbin in the Encyclopedia of Religion and Society edited by William H. Swatos (February 1998) ISBN 0-7619-8956-0
- Charismatic Authority: Emotional Bonds Between Leaders and Followers
- Weber links