Thesis (Ph.D.)--Boston University / The problem of this dissertation is that of tracing the philosophical presuppositions of Jefferson's social theories. This is done in two ways: (1) by determining his own implied presuppositions and (2) by tracing those presuppositions in the history of ideas. Although other aspects of his social thought are treated briefly, primary emphasis is placed upon his political philosophy. Jefferson cannot be called a philosopher in the classic sense of that term. The attempts to place Jefferson in a traditional philosophical school during the first twenty-five years of his life have been unrewarding if not misleading. Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence when he was thirty-three years of age and there is little indication that he had developed a systematic political philosophy. He interested himself in the early foundations of English common law and attempted unsuccessfully to establish the doctrine that true English law had its origin in a proto-democracy which had preceded the feudal era. [TRUNCATED]

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At the time of the founding of the field of public administration, government was in a condition of some degree of failure. Since elitist and corrupt politics were the predominant mode of government at the time, the cause of this failure was seen as insufficient rationality, and coinciding with this, a lack of scientific information and technical expertise. Also, a popular involvement in government was perceived to be a need. This created a demand for a scientific rational government, run by technocratic experts that was, at the same time, open to popular access. In principle, this idea is consistent with Dewey's thought, but what developed is a form of government that saw science, or the process of bringing knowledge to bear on problems that made interest groups the key mode of access to policy making. This solution appeared to meet the needs of the time, while in fact it was far off the mark. In all of this, Dewey's true and more appropriate alternative was lost. These conditions still exist. The American government is a seemingly, ailing government; but the only thing that is suggested is to have more science and give groups more "participative" access. In essence, virtual gridlock has resulted. One solution is to rediscover and accurately understand Dewey, who can help us rethink science and the knowledge process in government and the possibilities for citizen involvement in government. / Ph. D.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Teachers College, Columbia University, 1996. / Typescript; issued also on microfilm. Sponsor: Robert McClintock. Dissertation Committee: Robert Taylor. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 171-179).

Made available in DSpace on 2015-09-25T12:22:42Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 PDF - Jan Marcel de Almeida Freitas Lacerda.pdf: 2367462 bytes, checksum: 30e97c7d2ed361d6a6f9bf2d836f34c8 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-05-02 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / This dissertation examines the role of the Organization of American States (OAS) in the dissemination of ideas of democracy in Latin America, especially from the Post-Cold War period to the present. Thus, it is based on two central arguments: that ideas matter in international relations; and that, among the international actors that spread them, the International Organizations as International Bureaucracies are agents in the construction, protection and defense of ideas. For this purpose, initially, the reflection will be built on the contributions of the constructivist perspective of International Relations, whose thought is that ideas are fundamental for the constitution of realities, agents, interests and identities in the international context. Regarding the international organizations, the constructivist approach of international institutions as international bureaucracies stands out, providing the understanding of the logic of these organizations, both in the structural aspect and in the relevance of sectors, individuals and staff of international bureaucracies. Then, this research will discuss the evolution of the ideas of democracy, focusing especially on the procedural (or minimalist) and substantial (or participacionist) conceptions, will show the specificity and the problems of the Latin American democracy, and will observe the concept of democracy advocated by the OAS at the regional level of performance, primarily through its normative influence. Finally, the OAS behavior and its cooperation in the thematic area of defense and protection of democracy will be observed, focusing, especially, on the influences of cognitive and executive organization and congruence of ideas through the development of cooperation between institutions in order to build reports of studies and dialogue mechanisms (seminars, forums and meetings), in which ideas of democracies also be defended and disseminated. To achieve the aim of this research, literature reviews on concepts used by theorists of Political Science and International Relations will be conducted, as well as documentary and discourse of international civil servants of the OAS analysis, and interviews. / A presente dissertação analisa o papel da Organização dos Estados Americanos (OEA) na disseminação de ideias de democracia na América Latina, principalmente no período Pós-Guerra Fria até a atualidade. Assim, parte-se de dois argumentos centrais: as ideias importam nas Relações Internacionais; e, dentre os atores internacionais que as disseminam, as Organizações Internacionais como Burocracias Internacionais são agentes na construção, na proteção e na defesa das ideias. Para tanto, de início, a reflexão será construída a partir das contribuições da perspectiva construtivista das Relações Internacionais, cujo pensamento é de que as ideias são fundamentais para a constituição de realidades, agentes, interesses e identidades no contexto internacional. Já quanto às organizações internacionais, se sobressai a abordagem construtivista dessas instituições internacionais como burocracias internacionais, proporcionando a compreensão da lógica dessas organizações tanto no aspecto estrutural quanto na relevância dos setores, dos indivíduos e das equipes de servidores das burocracias internacionais. Em seguida, a pesquisa irá discutir a evolução das ideias de democracia, em especial focará nas concepções procedimentais (ou minimalistas) e substanciais (ou participacionistas), apresentará a especificidade e problemáticas da democracia latino-americana, e observará o conceito de democracia defendido pela OEA em âmbito regional de atuação, principalmente através de sua influência normativa. Por fim, será observado o comportamento e a cooperação da OEA em área temática de defesa e proteção da democracia, visualizando, sobretudo, as influências cognitivas e executivas da organização e a congruência de ideias por meio do desenvolvimento de cooperações entre instituições, com o intuito de construir relatórios de estudos e mecanismos de diálogo (seminários, fóruns e reuniões), nos quais ideias de democracias também serão defendidas e disseminadas. Para alcançar o objetivo da pesquisa, serão realizadas revisões literárias sobre conceitos utilizados por teóricos da Ciência Política e das Relações Internacionais, análises documentais e de discursos dos servidores civis internacionais da OEA, e entrevistas.

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