Interinstitutional articulation in public policies: scope and limitations
Abstract
A political and administrative order where sectorization and fragmentation take precedence over articulation and coordination presents serious difficulties to account for the complexity of contemporary societies and their problems. Thus, the need to adopt new perspectives in the design and management of public policies has prevailed and has given rise to the institutionalization of areas that address multicausal and multisectoral problems. Based on the analysis of the main characteristics of these modalities, tension of the conventional structures and practices in the management of public policies respect to the advance of these new forms is exposed in this paper, together with their scope and limitations. We conclude in the necessity of recovering the original Weberian proposals, in terms of the differential responsibilities of political decision makers and the bureaucracy; to deepen the progress towards true integrated policies and to consolidate a new generation of civil servants who “think” about public problems in a transdisciplinary way. This constitutes a process in which universities also have a relevant role to play.
