Towards an Integrated Analysis of the Public Policy Production Process: Lessons from Brazil

• Grant number: 25/14350-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: August 01, 2025
• End date: July 31, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Political Science - Public Policies
• Principal Investigator: Adrian Gurza Lavalle
• Grantee: Anne Louise Dias Ferreira
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Filosofia, Letras e Ciências Humanas (FFLCH). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 13/07616-7 - CEM - Center for Metropolitan Studies, AP.CEPID

Abstract

This thematic project proposes the development of an innovative analytical framework for the integrated analysis of public policy production in Brazil, combining institutional, ideational, and relational dimensions to produce cross-cutting and multi-level explanations of policy patterns. Drawing from various traditions and models of analysis, and focusing on different scales and decision-making arenas of government as well as the interaction between state and non-state actors, the study examines the production of social, urban, and environmental policies across different timeframes since the country's redemocratization. This analysis is conducted according to public policy sectors at both the national level and in the cities of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Belo Horizonte, and Fortaleza. The research is structured around five key axes: (1) subnational decision-making autonomy, (2) policy networks and communities, (3) socio-state capacities, (4) budgetary governance, and (5) changes in public policies. However, the specific activities outlined in this document pertain solely to the second research axis, within which the designated students will carry out the tasks assigned to them, as detailed below. The project combines qualitative and quantitative methods with the aim of overcoming fragmented explanations and providing a deeper understanding of the modes of public policy production. The work plan for this scientific initiative falls under the second axis. (AU)