Technology and the Conflict of Professionals in Bureaucratic Organizations

Abstract

This paper reports upon a secondary analysis of Richard Hall's (1968) data, indicating that two major trends—the increasing professionalization of the labor force and the increasing bureaucratization of organizations—are not necessarily incompatible. Because the bureaucratic and professional models imply different forms of organization, most research has been directed toward isolating the sources of conflict; the major emphasis being upon the incompatibility of professional and bureaucratic control. Using Thompson's (1967) classification of technology, the present research has focused upon two dimensions of professionalism (self-regulation, and autonomy) and three dimensions of bureaucracy (rules, procedures, and technical competence). The results suggest that the relationships between these dimensions vary by organizational technology and the nature of the professional tasks.

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