My SciELO
Revista Brasileira de Ciências Sociais
Print version ISSN 0102-6909
Abstract
MARQUES, Eduardo. Social networks and power in the Brazilian State: learning from urban policies.Translated byEduardo Marques. Rev. bras. ciênc. soc. [online]. 2007, vol.3Selected edition, pp. 0-0. ISSN 0102-6909.
This article presents results of two researches on urban policies in different Brazilian metropolises using network analysis. Policy network studies have explored the consequences of networks over policies, but have underestimated the consequences of the structure of the network itself. The institutional and personal networks that structure state organizations internally and insert them in broader political scenarios organize a mid-level structure I call State fabric. This introduces more stability and predictability than usually considered and gives access to a specific power resource, which I call positional power, associated with the positions political actors occupy in the State fabric, influencing politics inside and around the State.
Keywords : State; social networks; power; public policies; bureaucracies; Brazil.