essay

Homespun bureaucracy: a case study in organizational evolution

amish struggle with modernity • Hanover, Nh • Published In 1994 • Pages: 198-213, 274-275

By: Olshan, Marc Alan.

Abstract
The conspicuous absence of formal organizations signals one of the remarkable ways in which the Amish have remained a separate people. Missing from their society are the centralized structures, agencies, professional bureaucrats, and policy manuals which typify many religious communities. The Amish struggle with modernity has, however, produced an embryonic form of what Marc A. Olshan calls a homespun bureaucracy. In this article he suggest that the Amish paradoxically were forced by the growing encroachment of the state to develop their own bureaucratic forms -- the Old Order Amish Steering Committee -- in order to remain a separate people (p. 199).
Subjects
Administrative agencies
Theoretical orientation in research and its results
Religious denominations
Congregations
Recruitment and training
Military organization
culture
Amish
HRAF PubDate
2009
Region
North America
Sub Region
Regional, Ethnic and Diaspora Cultures
Document Type
essay
Evaluation
Creator Type
Sociologist
Document Rating
5: Excellent Primary Data
Analyst
John Beierle; 2007
Field Date
no date
Coverage Date
1809-1992
Coverage Place
United States
Notes
Marc A. Olshan
For bibliographical references see document 20: [Kraybill and Olshan]
LCCN
94013668
LCSH
Amish