academic bureaucracy

Brayden

Via Marginal Revolution, I see that Todd Zwycki is looking for “literature analyzing academic bureaucracies, especially from a public choice-type perspective.” Visitors to this site probably know this literature as well as anyone. Although most of these use theoretical perspectives distant from public choice, here is what came to mind:

• Karl Weick’s 1976 “Educational Organizations as Loosely Coupled Systems” from Administrative Science Quarterly generated quite a literature on loose-coupling. Far from public choice but yet very influential in organizational theory.
• John Meyer and Brian Rowan revived institutional theory in sociology with their analysis of higher education bureaucracies as enacted myths. See especially the 1977 American Journal of Sociology article.
• Although not directly about bureaucracy, Michael Cohen and Jim March’s garbage can model of decision-making is a fundamental piece about academic organizations.

Any other suggestions?