Non-state political elites between professionalization and democratic commitment: political culture from a comparative perspective in a large Brazilian municipality (2010–2022)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1590/SciELOPreprints.17795Keywords:
political culture, democracy, civil society organizations, political behavior, public policy councilsAbstract
Democracy has faced global setbacks in recent years, and Brazil has experienced events that have placed the regime under strain and altered relations between the State and civil society. In this context, managers of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), understood as a segment of non-state political elites, occupy relevant positions in the implementation of public policies, the representation of interests, and institutionalized spaces of participation. This article aims to comparatively analyze the profile and political culture of these managers in Maringá, Paraná, based on data collected in 2010 and 2022. Methodologically, it uses two quantitative survey datasets and develops a comparative descriptive statistical analysis, considering sociodemographic characteristics, educational attainment, conditions under which management functions are performed, political interest, ideological self-placement, information repertoires, preference for democracy, and institutional trust. The results show changes in the composition of the group studied, especially regarding sex, age, and educational attainment, as well as a substantial presence of paid managers, elements that indicate a process of professionalization of management positions. In the field of political culture, political interest and preference for democracy remain high, although differences are observed in ideological composition, sources of political information, and institutional trust, as well as a minority acceptance of circumstances involving democratic rupture in 2022. It is concluded that the transformations identified do not follow a single direction, indicating that the process of professionalization of management positions occurs alongside changes in different dimensions of political culture, without the data allowing a direct causal relationship to be established between these processes.
Downloads
Submitted
Posted
How to Cite
Section
Copyright (c) 2026 Suzie Keilla Viana da Silva, Éder Rodrigo Gimenes

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Plaudit
Data statement
-
The research data is contained in the manuscript


