Public integrity as a comprehensive multi-level policy framework and the study of the Brazilian case

Abstract

This study proposes an understanding of public integrity as a comprehensive multilevel policy framework, develops analytical schemes for examining and comparing international standards and integrity systems, and explores the Brazilian case to illustrate their application. It draws on policy diffusion and convergence theories and adopts an exploratory and qualitative research design with content analysis and documentary techniques. Documentary data were gathered between June 2023 and December 2024 through web-based strategies and requests for information, resulting in a corpus consisting of 69 documents produced between 2011 and 2023, containing evidence on the sources, fundamentals, and justifications of the rules, structures, and measures within the Brazilian integrity system. Findings suggest fragmentation of public integrity in this country, ambiguities in domestic norms and guidance concerning high-risk sectors and processes and state-owned enterprises, blurred definitions of integrity violations, and the predominance of the compliance-based approach. Beyond presenting a new understanding of public integrity, analytical schemes, and findings and discussions resulting from the analysis of the Brazilian case, this study’s contributions should provide insights for comparative and in-depth studies that enhance the scientific debate and the formulation and implementation of public integrity systems.