Punitivism and legitimacy: punishment and incarceration in São Paulo

• Grant number: 25/11625-9
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: July 01, 2025
• End date: June 30, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Sociology - Other specific Sociologies
• Principal Investigator: Marcos César Alvarez
• Grantee: Yasmin Flor dos Santos
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Filosofia, Letras e Ciências Humanas (FFLCH). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 13/07923-7 - Center of the Study of Violence - NEV/USP, AP.CEPID

Abstract

Recent debates in the Sociology of Punishment have highlighted the emergence of a punitive will that appears to dominate contemporary societies. The notions of a punitive turn, beginning in the second half of the twentieth century, as well as a general expansion of punitiveness, have been central to debates in this field of inquiry over the past decades. However, most diagnoses and studies in the area still rely on theories and empirical research restricted to national or regional contexts in North America and Western Europe. This underscores the need for studies that examine such phenomena in the so-called Global South. The objective of this study is precisely to examine the growth of incarceration in recent decades in the state of São Paulo and, more broadly, the punitive dynamics in Brazil and their impact on democratic legitimacy. As part of this investigation, the research assistant will be responsible for conducting literature reviews on these topics, as well as assisting in the development of a monitoring system for the state's prison system, which is currently under construction. (AU)