This project investigates the question of why local governments cooperate with one another for service provision and coordinated policies. It proposes that the selection of interlocal cooperation among local leaders in the Unites States can be best understood as a diffusion process by which local elites learn from the cooperative experiments of neighboring jurisdictions and reproduce them in order to realize similar gains when it makes sense to do so. This process, I argue, is driven by the mechanisms of learning, development of networks of trust, and interlocal competition. The project presents theory, methods, and results in three manuscripts. The first uses a newly constructed longitudinal dataset of financial transfers by local governments to show that localities are more likely to cooperate when larger shares of their neighbors were cooperating in the past. This process is amplified in regions with more intense interlocal competition. The second manuscript demonstrates that the diffusion of cooperation is most intense within particular types of local service provision, namely those that involve capital-intensive and system-maintenance functions of government, such as highways, sewers, and water delivery. Finally, the third paper presents results from an original, national survey of mayors and councilors that involved embedded experiments to tease out the hypothesized mechanisms of diffusion. Findings provide strong support for the role of development of trust and learning in the spread of interlocal cooperation. / Political Science

This study of the adoption and diffusion of paid sick leave laws in New Jersey has been designed to examine the spread of the policy between local governments and then the subsequent adoption of the policy by the state. In New Jersey, PSL was first adopted by Jersey City in 2013. Following that adoption, 12 other New Jersey municipalities adopted PSL. In 2018, a law was passed by the state that then voided all the municipal laws and replaced them with a statewide policy. Through a mixed methods research design, this study seeks to better understand the circumstances surrounding PSL. First, a logistic regression model was used to determine the characteristics that are associated with PSL adoption on the local level. Second, case studies were conducted for three adopting cities, Jersey City, Newark, and Morristown to better understand the political forces that facilitated the adoption and diffusion of PSL. Lastly, this study examined the adoption of PSL on the state level to better understand how the actions of governments on the local level affected the actions of the state government. The logistic regression found that large cities, cities with a higher percentage of minorities, cities with a mayor-council form of government, and cities with a higher Gini coefficient were more likely to adopt PSL. In contrast to the findings of the logistic regression, the case studies revealed that the cities that adopted PSL were heavily Democratic and elected officials identified progressiveness as a motivator for adopting this policy. This research used qualitative methods to evaluate how policy diffusion occurred and who facilitated this process. Through interviews, this research revealed the influence of policy advocates in helping to spread PSL to many New Jersey municipalities. An advocacy coalition named New Jersey Time to Care pursued what they termed the municipal approach. The political dynamics in the New Jersey state government prevented a statewide law from being adopted. Given this fact, the coalition pursued multiple municipal laws in order to help New Jerseyans receive paid sick leave benefits and to help build momentum for a statewide law when a change in political dynamics would allow for it. / Doctor of Philosophy / In recent years, many state and local governments have adopted paid sick leave laws. These laws require private businesses to allow their employees to earn and utilize paid sick days. This dissertation examines the jurisdictions in New Jersey that have adopted paid sick leave. It finds that large cities with a high percentage of minorities, a high level of income inequality, and a mayor-council form of government are more likely to adopt paid sick leave laws. This research also examines how advocacy groups influence elected officials in the policymaking process. Policy advocates built public support for the law and engaged in lobbying activities with elected officials. As they lobbied for the law, they presented city councils pre-drafted legislation that was then adopted by the city councils.

Since the advent of the millennium, a growing interest has arisen in information and communication technologies (ICT) given the potential to bridge the digital divide. ICT have had a central role to play in terms of economic, regulatory and political development. Telecommunications is used in this thesis as a sector case to study policy diffusion, which focuses on the movement of policies across borders and actors. This thesis answers the following research question: does policy diffusion take place in the telecommunications sector in the Middle East and North African (MENA) countries? This is answered using qualitative methods, such as expert interviews and the comparison of six cases, composed of two sectors of ICT; Universal Service Obligation (USO) and spectrum management, and of three countries; Morocco, Jordan and Egypt. In case the research question is positively answered two further foci are central to the thesis. Firstly, the thesis explores the conditions leading to policy diffusion. The thesis argues that the conditions leading to policy diffusion are linked to different degrees of vulnerability of countries to external actors. This vulnerability is described through four variables, which reveals the levels of governance and market openness and economic and political interconnectedness of the adopting countries. Secondly, it scrutinizes the links between sector variables and mechanisms of diffusion. The argument of this part is that different combinations of these sector variables support the differentiation across the four traditional mechanisms of policy diffusion; learning, imitation, competition and coercion. The main contributions of this thesis are both theoretical, to the literature of policy diffusion and empirical, regarding telecommunications regulation in three MENA countries. The thesis underlines the key role of government administrations as the main driver for policy change in MENA countries, compared to international pressures and market forces. Furthermore this thesis concludes that, in the telecommunications sector, transgovernmental channels are nowadays omnipresent in the phenomenon of policy diffusion and are thus not sufficient to disentangle mechanisms of diffusion. The thesis examines the additional factors of efficiency, economic interests and sanction capacity for explanatory power.

No description available.

This dissertation contributes to the disaster resilience policy literature by examining the diffusion of hazard mitigation policy in the U.S. Using the three-paper model, it investigates the adoption of local hazard mitigation plans (LHMPs) from an intergovernmental perspective. The first paper focuses on horizontal diffusion in hazard mitigation planning among local communities. Special attention is paid to the potential factors affecting the adoption of FEMA-approved LHMPs, Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) projects and Pre-Disaster Program (PDM) projects at the county level. The Event History Analysis (EHA) Logit Model and Spatial Autocorrelation Models test the hypotheses corresponding to external factors such as the neighboring effects and internal factors, including disaster risks, neighborhood disadvantage and affluence, government capacity, local disaster resilience advocacy groups, and political support. The empirical results confirmed the significant influence of neighboring effects, indicating that counties are more likely to implement the same mitigation strategies if neighboring counties have done so. The results also revealed that disaster experience, government capacity, and strong democratic support significantly impact the likelihood of adopting LHMP and HMGP. Additionally, the results suggested that disadvantaged communities were more likely to adopt mitigation policies, while affluent communities were less likely to adopt such policies. The second paper evaluates the effectiveness of the FEMA's Program Administration by State Pilot (PAS). By integrating the Propensity Score Matching (PSM) technique with the Difference-in-Differences (DID) analysis, the empirical evidence demonstrated a significant reduction in the approval times for both LHMP and HMGP in pilot states compared to non-pilot states, with an average reduction nearing 30%. This suggests that the PAS program has effectively streamlined administrative processes, thereby enhancing efficiency in disaster management within pilot states. The analysis also indicated that the impact of PAS on the actual funding received through HMGP was insignificant, suggesting that while administrative processes were expedited, the allocation of financial resources remained unaffected. The third paper attempts to understand how local governments respond to top-down policy pressures in vertical diffusion by analyzing the text similarities of hazard mitigation strategies between state hazard mitigation plans and county LHMPs in Ohio using the word embedding technologies. The study employs the Word2Vec algorithm to assess the policy similarity between the hazard mitigation goals outlined in LHMPs and SHMPs. Building on this initial analysis, this research further uses the Beta Regression model to examine the textual similarities within LHMPs in Ohio, focusing on how the type of author - government versus private consultants, and the nature of the goals, whether action-based or hazard-based, affect these alignments. The regression analysis shows that LHMPs authored by government entities tend to exhibit higher textual similarity, reflecting the influence of standardized approaches driven by state and federal guidelines. This suggests a compliance-driven alignment in government-written plans. Conversely, LHMPs authored by private consultants display greater variability, suggesting that these plans are customized to the specific needs and risk assessments of local communities. Additionally, the regression results indicate that action-based and mixed-goal LHMPs are associated with higher textual similarity across counties. To carry out the empirical analysis mentioned above, this dissertation builds a panel dataset for all counties from 2000 to 2020, which contains data on LHMPs, HMA projects, disaster risks, socioeconomic characteristics, regional economic and political indicators, etc. / Doctor of Philosophy / Hazard mitigation in the United States is a critical issue, especially as the frequency and cost of disasters continue to rise. This dissertation investigates the dynamics of hazard mitigation planning within a multi-level governmental framework, focusing on the adoption of Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) approved Local Hazard Mitigation Plans (LHMPs), Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) projects, and Pre-Disaster Program (PDM) projects. across U.S. counties and the influence of federal and state policies on these local initiatives. The first paper examines the horizontal diffusion of LHMPs among local communities, revealing the significant influence of neighboring counties. This "neighboring effect" shows that counties are more likely to adopt similar mitigation strategies if their neighbors have done so, emphasizing the role of regional collaboration in spreading effective disaster resilience practices. Additionally, the study found that counties with more disaster experience and greater governmental capacity are more likely to implement LHMPs, highlighting the importance of preparedness and resources in driving policy adoption. Furthermore, this research finds counties with higher socioeconomic disadvantages are more proactive in adopting mitigation policies, which could be attributed to the higher perceived risks and available federal funding targeted at these communities. The second paper evaluates the impact of FEMA's Program Administration by State (PAS) pilot program on the administrative efficiency of LHMP and HMGP approvals. The findings indicate a significant reduction in approval times in pilot states, suggesting that the PAS program has successfully streamlined administrative processes. However, this expedited process did not lead to increased funding or broader adoption, pointing to the need for further policy enhancements to ensure that administrative improvements translate into real-world benefits for disaster preparedness. The third paper explores the vertical diffusion of policy from state to local governments, using Ohio as a case study. It employs advanced text analysis to measure the similarity between state and local hazard mitigation plans. The results show that government-authored LHMPs tend to closely follow state guidelines, indicating a top-down influence that ensures compliance with federal and state objectives. In contrast, LHMPs authored by private consultants were more varied and aligned to the specific needs and risks of local communities. This suggests that a balance is needed between standardized policies and local customization to effectively address the unique challenges of different regions. By integrating these findings, this dissertation provides a comprehensive overview of how hazard mitigation policies are adopted and implemented across various governmental levels. The research concludes with policy recommendations that advocate for sustained reforms in hazard mitigation funding, emphasizing the need for equitable resource distribution among disadvantaged communities. It also offers critical insights into improving intergovernmental cooperation and policy effectiveness, ensuring that all communities, regardless of their socio-economic status, can enhance their resilience and better prepare for future disasters. This research ultimately serves as a guide for policymakers to refine strategies that foster robust, community-centered resilience practices, enhancing the nation's overall disaster preparedness and response capabilities.

How do catch-up East Asian countries cultivate their exchange rate (ER) policies in a different trajectory than advanced economies often cited in current literature? What are the dynamics and results (pros and cons) of choosing a particular ER policy, and what influence does it have on the progress of developmental states? How do domestic and international politics explain the convergences and variances of ER policy decisions in East Asia? The decisions of ER policy are by all means political choices. ERs influence the prices of daily exchanged goods, and thereby determine resource allocation within and across national borders. Therefore, any internal political actor, including a government, interest group, foreign party or constituent exerts discretionary power to manipulate an ER to satisfy its own interests. Externally, the size of foreign trade and the status of international monetary accounts closely depend on the valuation and volatility of ER. Thus for the transitional polities and the trade-driving economies in East Asia, the analysis of ER politics not only helps to clarify the complex mechanisms of ER influences combined with various interests and institutional settings, but also to advance the political study of globalization. My dissertation proposes an integrated framework to contend that the domestic distributional politics and economic determinants, as well as the international monetary relations, and regional market force and adaptive policy diffusion are crucial factors that influence and interact with ER policy in East Asia. This theoretical framework explains how an ER policy decision is compromised between domestically generated preferences and apparently intense international interactions. Likewise, this dissertation provides a vigorous empirical specification toward the spatiotemporal differences of ER policy in East Asia. The application of the structural vector autoregression (SVAR) model properly specifies the theoretical dynamics across variables in the East Asian panel data compiled from 1980 to 2004. Furthermore, by using the alternative Bayesian estimation, SVAR successfully demonstrates the "spinning stories" that distinguish the variances with regard to country-specific development under the asymmetrically international and interdependently regional monetary system. The empirical findings verify that my theoretical variables interact significantly with ER policy decisions in East Asia. The statistics also demonstrate that most East Asian countries tend to strategically withstand influences from the various waves of capital liberalization and keep their currencies at low values. In a general testing, however, domestic pursuits for preferred interests gradually yield to the persistent influences of international and regional forces on ER policy making in East Asia. / text

面對全球氣候急遽變遷的挑戰下，各國政府對於環境治理議題高度的重視與 關切。在1992年京都議定書制定後，國家透過彼此的規範制約，期望可減少二 氧化碳的排放與環境的破壞。然而，正式權威途徑的執行，對於經濟發展與環境 永續的趨避衝突，卻不見預期效益。爾後，森林認證概念倡議後，希冀以市場途 徑作為國際規範，進入各國的創新管道。而第一個透過非政府組織建立的FSC體系，在2001年經由WWF進入中國大陸推展認證項目。只是，西方的運作思維與原則框架，在中國大陸終究遭遇到體制與管理上的困境。2008年後，中國大陸政府除了主導國家體系CFCC外，也與PEFC在2014年正式達成互認的成果。本研究試圖從政策改變前與後，以兩個階段分析行動者協力合作的情況，網 絡互動與體系採用的擴散情況。 研究結果分為兩個部分，首先就問卷統計數據來看協力與體系採用的相關性。對於FSC而言，治理與規範性是行動者選擇採用與否的重要因素。也就是行動者選擇FSC是因為重視認證資源的獲取、非正式關係的信任度與公開透明的正式溝通管道。而對於PEFC而言，治理因素同樣重要，而受到行動者支持的是相互性因數。傘型認證體制的特性，共同分享資訊、資源，使得政策場域中的行動者支持 PEFC。然而，對於CFCC而言並沒有太大的差異性。而在協力與網絡互動的分析上，自主性成為影響的因數。代表政策場域中的行動者，重視管理協調與主導政策制定討論的過程。 第二，對於擴散因數與體系採用的相關檢定。對FSC而言，社會化是重要 的關鍵。政策制定行動者考慮的是體系鄰近性、市場偏好、企業喜好與國際組織 的支持。而採用CFCC的行動者，同樣認為社會化重要。表示，利益方瞭解這是一個市場遊戲，而CFCC得到PEFC的互認後，對國家體系保持肯定態度。然而，競爭因素與採用CFCC也具有顯著性。表示行動者瞭解在中國大陸，政府透過管制帶來的競爭情勢，因此選擇了CFCC體系。 第三，就社會網絡分析數據分析，來看組織協力與體系採用關係。以程度中 心性來看，在資源與專業知識面向，皆是從國際組織轉向政府部門。在影響力層 面，國際組織甚至在第二階段便消失。而正式途徑的合作，以政府及國際組織為 兩大群體。但在第二階段，政府集中性更高，而國際組織則愈趨降低。包括在信 任度上，國際非政府組織也是下降的情況。在結構洞分析方面，第一階段的資源 掮客是一個多元組織的分佈，到的第二階段則單一化，國際體系成為傳達訊息的 角色。在影響力方面，第二階段主要是政府的角色成為掮客，而國際組織傳達影 響力的功能消失。而在信度度方面，第二階段發現國際非政府組織與企業，反而 更突顯他們在非正式關係網絡中的掮客位置。影響信任網絡的因素，分析發現政 策制定過程的資訊分享是關鍵原因。 本論文認為國際規範不僅建立在行動者的合作上，更需要結合地方組織，透 過社區力量建立由下而上的互動網絡。尤其第一階段，中國大陸需要藉由國際力 量，協助國內政策制定。因此，給予行動一個大鳴大放的空間與環境。第二階段， 受到協商過程的困境，而形成權力收回的情況。再者，中國大陸對於非政治敏感 議題，並非完全恪守政治命令而行，來決定政策發展的方向。相反的，政府可相 對釋出部分的自主性給國際組織。然而，當遭遇話語權問題時，便會透過管制途 徑收回權力，是一種「妥協式的管制協力」。而擴散的效應則是源於政策場域中， 行動者對於政策的學習與社會化而成。本研究透過微觀的實證資料，對中國大陸 協力、擴散與網絡互動研究有興趣的學者，提供另一個角度的解釋。總結來說， 國際規範透過非政府組織的「非正式途徑」，從國外帶入國內，並同時垂直向上 與向下影響中央政府的決策，及提升草根的公民力量。以中國大陸經驗反思國際 政策治理理論，重構對於開發中國家的「迴力鏢效應 2.0」模式。 / While facing the challenge of global climate change, each country puts much emphasis on environmental governance issues urgently. Since the Kyoto Protocol declared in 1992, the effective approach to resolve environmental crisis aims to regulate environmental standards and reduce emission of carbon dioxide through various air, forest and water management. However, the management efficiency is not obvious to enhance the sustainable target by formal authorities because of the conflict of economic development and environmental sustainability. The forest certification mechanism is an innovative business strategy to implement international norms into domestic governance. Particularly, FSC is successfully getting into China to develop systems through the strong support from international organizations and enterprises. On the other hand, FSC also confronted many obstacles in regulatory institution and management difficulties from Chinese registration and standard laws. Meanwhile, Chinese governments dominated in national system (CFCC) which had recognized with PEFC in 2014. This research analysis focused on the development of collaboration, network interaction and system adoption in two stages of policy change. First, the statistical findings show that norm and governance factors are significant to actors in adoption of FSC which means that the policy makers emphasize on the resource, informal trust relationships and transparent formal communication. Also, governance is important to actors to adopt PEFC systems. Another influential factor is mutuality that actors prefer the umbrella mechanism of PEFC to share information and resources with more flexible institutions. Otherwise, the correlation of interval variable of collaboration and network interaction, the analysis shows that autonomy is the influential factor to affect the collaborative relationships among actors in policy domain. On the other side, the interactive relationship is not significantly correlated to system adoption and diffusion. Second, about the results of diffusion and system adoption, socialization is a crucial element to support FSC because of system approximation, market preferences and INGO support. To CFCC adopters, socialization is also a significant factor to them which means that they understand the certification system is a global market game. After CFCC recognized with PEFC, policy-domain actors approve CFCC. Meanwhile, competition is a considerable dimension to actors by regulatory approach by central governments. Finally, based on network analysis of centrality, the high-central actors transformed to governmental actors from international NGOs in the second stage. Meanwhile, INGOs disappeared in influential factor. As for formal collaborative relationship, the public sectors and INGOs are two main groups. However, the public sectors are more central, but INGO are more peripheral. Also, the trust centrality of INGOs descends since CFCC and PEFC recognized. Of the structural-constraint analysis, the resource brokers are multiple in the first stage, but more homogeneous to public sector then. In policy-influence dimension, the governmental organizations are still main brokers in the second stage, and INGOs disappeared. The trust brokers are INGO and private sectors that highlight their informal relationships in the broker network. The Chinese governments release the approach of “airing views freely” to INGOs and multinational corporations in the first stage, and take back the autonomous right in second one because of “political baselines”. In conclusion, this research argues that collaborative governance not only requires the legitimacy of international norms and rules implemented to domestic markets, but also integrates more local actors in policy-making process to enhance the efficiency. Chinese governmental actors are willing to cooperate with others by releasing more power and autonomy. However, they also take back the power while they lose the power of discourse which means that it is “negotiable regulation and collaboration”. Moreover, the research results reform the “Boomerang Effect 2.0” to rethink about another vertical effect of INGOs power bringing into domestic central governments and local civil society.

Esta tese de doutorado explora uma faceta ainda obscura nos estudos sobre a democracia e a participação, que consiste na difusão internacional de ideias e tecnologias de governança participativa. As pesquisas recentes sobre este tema têm insistido na influência de atores diversos para explicar o fenômeno da difusão, atribuindo ênfase especial às Organizações Internacionais. A indicação de modelos específicos da parte de tais instituições é frequente, como no caso do Orçamento Participativo (OP), que hoje conta com mais de 2800 experiências ao redor do globo. No entanto, seriam suficientes as orientações de instituições internacionais para explicar a difusão de ideias e tecnologias de governança participativa? Situada entre a análise de políticas públicas e o estudo das relações internacionais, a proposta da pesquisa de doutorado foi de examinar o processo de difusão do OP, por meio de metodologia qualitativa, combinando entrevistas em profundidade, observação participante e análise de documentos. O estudo foi desenvolvido a partir da análise de um caso de origem, Porto Alegre, e diversos casos de transferência na África Subsaariana e na América Latina. Os resultados de pesquisa apontam para a existência de um fluxo global, movimentos de difusão regional, como na região dos Andes, e movimentos pontuais de transferência, em que o OP se desloca de uma instituição à outra, como de Porto Alegre, no Brasil, para o município de Cotacachi, no Equador, ou ainda para Maputo, no Moçambique. Foi possível constatar que a ação de um conjunto de indivíduos foi fundamental para inserir o OP na agenda internacional, bem como para auxiliar nos processos de transferência no exterior. Uma vez que o OP se legitima no plano externo, as Organizações Internacionais passam a fazer mais diferença, pois financiam experiências, organizam oficínas de capacitação de quadros e produzem manuais de implementação. A técnica utilizada para realizar este estudo foi a do rastreamento do processo, que procura identificar as cadeias de mecanismos causais que afetam um determinado fenômeno. A dimensão empírica da pesquisa foi composta por fontes primárias. Para este estudo foram feitas mais de 120 entrevistas em profundidade em nove países (África do Sul, Brasil, Equador, Espanha, Estados Unidos da América, França, Moçambique, Peru, Senegal). Além disso, foi realizada observação participante em eventos internacionais e também foram coletados materiais in loco, como documentos oficiais, artigos da imprensa e arquivos multimídia. / This thesis explores an obscure facet in studies about democracy and participation, namely the international diffusion of ideas and technologies on participatory governance. Recent researches on the topic highlight the influence of various actors to explain the diffusion phenomenon, drawing particular attention to international organizations. These institutions often recommend the use of specific models, as in the case of the Participatory Budgeting (PB), which currently accounts over 2800 experiences worldwide. Nonetheless, do recommendations from international institutions suffice to explain the transfer of ideas and technologies on participatory governance? Situated between public policy analysis and the study of international relations, this doctoral research seeks to examine the transfer of Participatory Budgeting through a qualitative methodology, combining in-depth interviews, participant observation and document analysis. This research is based on the analysis of the key case of Porto Alegre and several cases of transfer in Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America. Research findings indicate there is a global flow, a regional diffusion, as in the Andes, and also isolated transfers, in which PB streams from one institution to another, as exemplified on the transfer from Porto Alegre, Brazil, to the municipality of Cotacachi, Ecuador, or to Maputo in Mozambique. It was found that the actions of a group of individuals were crucial to make PB part of the international agenda. These actors have also assisted to promote transfers abroad. Once Participatory Budgeting becomes legitimate abroad, international organizations play a bigger role since they finance these experiences, organize training workshops for staff and develop implementation manuals. The technique used to conduct this study was the process-tracing, which seeks to identify chains of causal mechanisms that affect a particular phenomenon. The empirical dimension of this research is composed of primary sources. For this study, over 120 in-depth interviews in nine countries (South Africa, Brazil, Ecuador, Spain, United States, France, Mozambique, Peru, Senegal) were made. Furthermore, there were participant observations in international events and the collection of materials on-site, such as official documents, press articles and multimedia files.

This thesis advances our understanding of how ideas play a role in policy making by examining the processes and conditions that facilitate their international diffusion into domestic debates, their acceptance by policy actors, and the ways in which their acceptance alters policy processes and policy itself. Specifically, the thesis studies the impact of labour market policy ideas from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and its large-scale study on unemployment, the Jobs Study, in three OECD member states: Canada, Denmark and Sweden. This thesis shows that ideas play a number of roles: sometimes they are simply employed to help legitimize pre-determined policy positions; but sometimes a process of learning takes place, and new ideas change actors’ beliefs about what is and what ought to be, and as well their conception of their own interests and goals. Consistent with previous research, policy failure and uncertainty open actors up to the policy learning process and acceptance of new ideas. More than earlier studies, however, this thesis highlights the role of pre-existing beliefs. Accepting one new idea over another is largely determined by the values and beliefs actors bring to bear when judging new ideas; and thus, the cases show a pattern of acceptance for OECD ideas that largely follows along professional boundaries and/or ideological leanings. Moreover, pre-existing beliefs that are intertwined with an actor’s identity tend to be more resistant to change. As other ideational scholars argue, a change in individuals’ beliefs can alter both the policy process and policy itself. When acceptance of an idea is widespread, problems of collective action can be overcome. When beliefs are not as widely shared, their impact on policy depends on many factors. Fragmentation of power and accountability can create “veto players,” and previous policies can create constituencies of supporters, some of whom may resist change. However, during a policy paradigm change, a shift in authority over policy can alter the political landscape and whose ideas matter. Given all these variables, the impact that a belief in new ideas can have on policy is highly mediated, and policy reforms, therefore, may not resemble the ideas which triggered the acceptance of change in the first place. / Thesis (Ph.D, Political Studies) -- Queen's University, 2011-01-31 12:49:18.185

Esta tese de doutorado explora uma faceta ainda obscura nos estudos sobre a democracia e a participação, que consiste na difusão internacional de ideias e tecnologias de governança participativa. As pesquisas recentes sobre este tema têm insistido na influência de atores diversos para explicar o fenômeno da difusão, atribuindo ênfase especial às Organizações Internacionais. A indicação de modelos específicos da parte de tais instituições é frequente, como no caso do Orçamento Participativo (OP), que hoje conta com mais de 2800 experiências ao redor do globo. No entanto, seriam suficientes as orientações de instituições internacionais para explicar a difusão de ideias e tecnologias de governança participativa? Situada entre a análise de políticas públicas e o estudo das relações internacionais, a proposta da pesquisa de doutorado foi de examinar o processo de difusão do OP, por meio de metodologia qualitativa, combinando entrevistas em profundidade, observação participante e análise de documentos. O estudo foi desenvolvido a partir da análise de um caso de origem, Porto Alegre, e diversos casos de transferência na África Subsaariana e na América Latina. Os resultados de pesquisa apontam para a existência de um fluxo global, movimentos de difusão regional, como na região dos Andes, e movimentos pontuais de transferência, em que o OP se desloca de uma instituição à outra, como de Porto Alegre, no Brasil, para o município de Cotacachi, no Equador, ou ainda para Maputo, no Moçambique. Foi possível constatar que a ação de um conjunto de indivíduos foi fundamental para inserir o OP na agenda internacional, bem como para auxiliar nos processos de transferência no exterior. Uma vez que o OP se legitima no plano externo, as Organizações Internacionais passam a fazer mais diferença, pois financiam experiências, organizam oficínas de capacitação de quadros e produzem manuais de implementação. A técnica utilizada para realizar este estudo foi a do rastreamento do processo, que procura identificar as cadeias de mecanismos causais que afetam um determinado fenômeno. A dimensão empírica da pesquisa foi composta por fontes primárias. Para este estudo foram feitas mais de 120 entrevistas em profundidade em nove países (África do Sul, Brasil, Equador, Espanha, Estados Unidos da América, França, Moçambique, Peru, Senegal). Além disso, foi realizada observação participante em eventos internacionais e também foram coletados materiais in loco, como documentos oficiais, artigos da imprensa e arquivos multimídia. / This thesis explores an obscure facet in studies about democracy and participation, namely the international diffusion of ideas and technologies on participatory governance. Recent researches on the topic highlight the influence of various actors to explain the diffusion phenomenon, drawing particular attention to international organizations. These institutions often recommend the use of specific models, as in the case of the Participatory Budgeting (PB), which currently accounts over 2800 experiences worldwide. Nonetheless, do recommendations from international institutions suffice to explain the transfer of ideas and technologies on participatory governance? Situated between public policy analysis and the study of international relations, this doctoral research seeks to examine the transfer of Participatory Budgeting through a qualitative methodology, combining in-depth interviews, participant observation and document analysis. This research is based on the analysis of the key case of Porto Alegre and several cases of transfer in Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America. Research findings indicate there is a global flow, a regional diffusion, as in the Andes, and also isolated transfers, in which PB streams from one institution to another, as exemplified on the transfer from Porto Alegre, Brazil, to the municipality of Cotacachi, Ecuador, or to Maputo in Mozambique. It was found that the actions of a group of individuals were crucial to make PB part of the international agenda. These actors have also assisted to promote transfers abroad. Once Participatory Budgeting becomes legitimate abroad, international organizations play a bigger role since they finance these experiences, organize training workshops for staff and develop implementation manuals. The technique used to conduct this study was the process-tracing, which seeks to identify chains of causal mechanisms that affect a particular phenomenon. The empirical dimension of this research is composed of primary sources. For this study, over 120 in-depth interviews in nine countries (South Africa, Brazil, Ecuador, Spain, United States, France, Mozambique, Peru, Senegal) were made. Furthermore, there were participant observations in international events and the collection of materials on-site, such as official documents, press articles and multimedia files.