Max Weber distinguished three ideal types of political leadership, domination and authority: charismatic domination (familial and religious), traditional domination (patriarchs, patrimonalism, feudalism) and legal domination (modern law and state, bureaucracy). He also notes that legal dominiation is the most advanced, and that societies evolve from having mostly traditional and charismatic authorities to mostly rational and legal ones, due to the fact that the instability of charismatic authority inevitably forces it to "routinize" into a more structured form of authority. Likewise he notes that in a pure type of traditional rule, sufficient resistance to a master can lead to a "traditional revolution". Thus he alludes to an inevitable move towards a rational-legal structure of authority, utilizing a bureaucratic structure. This ties to his broader concept of rationalization by suggesting the inevitability of a move in this direction. Thus this theory can be sometimes viewed as part of the social evolutionism theory.

In traditional authority, the legitimacy of the authority comes from tradition, in charismatic authority from the personality and leadership qualities of the individual (charisma), and in legal (or rational-legal) authority from powers that are bureaucratically and legally attached to certain positions. A classic example of these three types may be found in religion: priests (traditional), Jesus (charismatic), and the Roman Catholic Church (legal-rational). Weber also conceived of these three types within his three primary modes of conflict: traditional authority within status groups, charismatic authority within class, and legal-rational authority within party organizations.

In his view every historical relation between rulers and ruled contained elements that can be analyzed on the basis of the above distinction.

Characteristic

Charismatic

Traditional

Legal-Rational

Type of ruler

Charismatic leader

Dominant personality

Functional superiors or bureaucratic officials

Position determined by:

Having a dynamic personality

Established tradition or routine

Legally established authority

Ruled using:

Extraordinary qualities and exceptional powers

Acquired or inherited (hereditary) qualities

Virtue of rationally established norms, decrees, and other rules and regulations

Legitimized:

Victories and success to community

Established tradition or routine

General belief in the formal correctness of these rules and those who enact them are considered a legitimized authority

Loyalty:

Interpersonalàpersonal allegiance and devotion

Based on traditional allegiances

To authority / rules

Cohesion:

Emotionaly unstable and volatile

Feeling of common purpose

Abiding by rules (see Merton’s theory of deviance)

Leadership:

Rulers and followers (disciples)

Established forms of social conduct

Rules, not rulers

See also

---

• Form of government
• List of charismatic leaders (on the basis of Weber's classification)
• The Three Types of Legitimate Rule

Max Weber | Sociology