Ontology and Government

Abstract

What kind of things do we need to hypothesize when we refer to “government”? A government is made up of actors—individuals who occupy roles; who have beliefs, interests, commitments, and goals; and who exist within social relations and networks involving other individuals both within and outside the corridors of power. How are the actors who make up government tied together through constraints, actions, institutions, values, incentives, norms, identities, emotions, and interests? What forms of social causation and influence serve to constitute the organizations and institutions of government? Recent work in organizational sociology has provided new tools for describing social arrangements within organizations on the basis of which organizations function. Current studies of organizations also provide a basis for understanding the importance and sources of dysfunction within government and other ensembles of organizations. This chapter lays the ground for developing an extensive theory of the social realities that constitute a modern government.