DEMOCRACY AND DEMOCRATIC ADMINISTRATION: AN ANALYSIS OF THE APPROPRIATIONS OF NORBERTO BOBBIO'S THOUGHT IN SCIENTIFIC ARTICLES (2000-2025)

Abstract

This article analyzes the theoretical appropriations of Norberto Bobbio's thought in scientific articles dealing with education, aiming to identify how different conceptions of democracy present in his work have been mobilized in studies related to the democratic administration of public schools. This research is characterized as a qualitative study of a bibliographic nature, carried out through the survey and analysis of scientific articles published in the SciELO and Educ@ databases during the period from 2000 to 2025. The selected texts were examined through content analysis (Bardin, 2016), seeking to identify the main interpretations of the concept of democracy associated with Bobbian thought. The analysis allowed the identification of four central categories of theoretical appropriation: democracy as a guarantee of rights; democracy as participation and a space for dialogue; democracy as an institutional procedure and ethical practice; and democracy as a participatory political culture. The results indicate that, although the procedural dimension of democracy is predominant in the analyzed interpretations, the studies also emphasize the relationship between democracy, participation, and citizenship education within the educational context. The contemporary relevance and explanatory power of Norberto Bobbio's thought are reiterated for understanding the democratic administration of education and public schools, particularly regarding the institutionalization of participatory mechanisms, such as the selection of school principals, understood not only as formal management devices but as political-pedagogical practices for citizenship education and the consolidation of a democratic culture in school institutions.