Socio-symbolic work protecting open government policies

• Ano de defesa: 2024
• Autor(a) principal: Garcia, Giulia
• Tipo de documento: Dissertação
• Tipo de acesso: Acesso aberto
• Idioma: eng
• Instituição de defesa: Biblioteca Digitais de Teses e Dissertações da USP
• Palavras-chave em Português: Defesa Sócio-Simbólica; Governo Aberto; Governo Local; Local Government; Open Government; Socio-Symbolic Defense; Socio-Symbolic Work; Trabalho Sócio-Simbólico
• Link de acesso: https://www.teses.usp.br/teses/disponiveis/100/100138/tde-30072024-121236/

Contemporary and civil society organizations face challenges in implementing and safeguarding initiatives such as open government and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices. Despite their importance, these initiatives often face opposition from various stakeholders. Open government policies have been widely adopted across various democratic nations, but they represent transformative shifts that disrupt traditional power dynamics among politicians, civil servants, and members of civil society. This dissertation analyzes the presence of supportive action for open government policy in the case of Sao Paulo city, based on the socio-symbolic work (SSW) concept. Therefore, we examine how political power and open government promoters intentionally construct or maintain particular socio-symbolic objects, such as concepts, social categories, brands, and ideas, to support openness in the case study. Considering this, we adopted an inductive qualitative method to understand and analyze open government policy through the lens of socio-symbolic work, utilizing primary data mainly through semi-conducted interviews and secondary data. The analysis shows that open government policy in the city of São Paulo emerged within a specific ideological framework that has led to transitional periods marked by impactful changes in management. Agents of change helped to navigate complex and challenging times, fostering connections and garnering support for open government policies. Our findings can benefit practitioners and policymakers acting with public policies on contested issues. We observed a similarity between attacks in the form of covered and uncovered power on open government policies and those directed to other public policies at other levels of government. The socio-symbolic work literature explains how leaders can build protections based on stakeholder engagement and discursive strategies