Meritocracy between Myth, Norm and Reality

The concept of meritocracy has recently been gaining importance in the social sciences and media. Authors come to different conclusions on its importance for social (in)equality, mobility, education or the (re)production of knowledge, and the relationship between experts, politics and public opinion. While meritocracy means the 'ruling' of a special group possessing certain charac- teristics, it should also be considered as a regulatory principle of human resources management that directs the selection of people for strategically important functions. The main question in this introductory and review article is: what is the significance, scope and limitation of the meritocratic allocation of human resources in an emerging knowledge-based society, and how does it affect professional credibility (meritori- ousness), social mobility, social (in)equality and the wider socio-political context?