Organizational Intellectuals and the Criticism of Society

Abstract

Joseph Schumpeter saw the intellectuals as a major source of change in Western society. But he did not examine in detail their institutional support. C. Wright Mills perceived their increasing organizational employment, but believed that such employment meant the death of dissent. Macroprocesses leading to a larger stratum of intellectual critics are traced. Focus is on changes in education, the labor force, and social movements. The opportunities and constraints of different organizations, social movements, government agencies, and private organizations for the careers of organizational intellectuals are analyzed.