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Curriculum: Modelli per il miglioramento della performance nel settore pubblico

This PhD curriculum approaches the concept of "health" through a systemic and integrative lens, moving beyond the traditional focus on healthcare systems or hospitals. While these institutions are essential for managing and treating human pathologies, they represent only a portion of the efforts required to address health comprehensively within today's complex socio-ecological and economic systems. A robust and sustainable health policy should encompass multiple dimensions:

1. Prevention of Health Dysfunctions: Implementing strategies that proactively address potential health issues before they manifest. 'Active Aging' and 'Healthy Nutrition' policies play an important role in this effort, as they are intrinsically linked to cultural and educational factors."

2. Post-Hospital Care and Treatment: Ensuring continuity of care following hospital discharge to support full recovery and prevent relapse.

3. Health of the Surrounding System: Recognizing and promoting the health of the broader environment in which humans live, including:

- Animal health

- Flora and fauna ecosystems

- Water and air quality

- Other natural elements.

These factors are intrinsically interconnected, forming a complex system that influences human health.

This holistic perspective aligns with the "One Health" approach, which emphasizes the interdependence of human, animal, and environmental health. Implementing sustainable health policies within this framework necessitates:

• Modeling Knowledge and Capabilities: Developing and utilizing models that can simulate and predict health outcomes based on various interventions and environmental factors.

• Supporting Interorganizational Learning Processes: Facilitating collaboration and knowledge exchange among diverse stakeholders to foster a shared understanding and coordinated action.

• Adopting a Systemic Approach: Understanding and addressing the causeeffect relationships that underpin the functionality or dysfunctionality of health systems.

These efforts should operate across three interconnected levels:

1. Organizational Level: Focusing on individual entities, such as hospitals or health departments, to optimize their internal processes and outcomes.

2. Inter-Organizational Level on Specific Themes: Encouraging collaboration between organizations on targeted health issues, such as infectious disease control or environmental health initiatives.

3. Modular Level: Addressing cross-cutting themes that span multiple stakeholders and topics, facilitating integrated solutions that consider the interconnectedness of various health determinants.

By embracing this comprehensive and collaborative approach, health policies can more effectively promote sustainable health outcomes that are resilient over time and adaptable across different contexts.

The common denominator of this multi-level approach to developing sustainable policies is the "places" where the lives of people and organizational institutions take place. These places are characterized not only by businesses but also by history, culture, traditions, natural resources, image, infrastructure, human capital, and other shared resources. Their integrated, multi-level governance should enable a territorial area—whether a city, an inland area, a region, or any other place where life unfolds—to function in a way very similar to what is necessary for the functional development of individuals and various types of organizations. The goal is to develop a multi-level mindset that ensures an adequate metabolic balance of organizations and contexts that does not devolve into overconsumption.

This vision of analyzing healthcare policies, strongly integrated with health policies, aligns with the principle of localizing the Sustainable Development Goals outlined in the UN 2030 Agenda. Students will learn how this perspective can be effectively applied through the development of collaborative platforms guided by system dynamics models integrated with an outcome-based performance vision. This methodological approach is called "Dynamic Performance Management & Governance" (DPM/DPG)."

Curriculum: Dynamics of Legal Systems

The main objective of the Dynamics of Legal Systems curriculum is to critically interpret and assess the efficiency and effectiveness of major legal systems and models—both nationally and internationally—through an advanced comparative approach. Where possible, it also aims to develop innovative solutions to complex problems involving economic, cultural, historical, and social factors.

Issues such as pollution, climate change, access to natural resources, the use of new technologies, and the quality of urban environments and public services affect individual health, especially that of vulnerable populations. In a global context marked by ecological and health crises, this area of research proves crucial in promoting environmental and social justice and sustainability. This is approached not only through interpretation of the current national and international legal frameworks, but also by exploring the potential active roles of public policy, businesses, intermediate communities, and citizens in shaping innovative and effective legal responses to emerging challenges.

By way of example, the following are potential research topics related to the broader “Health & Environment” cluster, suitable as PhD project proposals under the Dynamics of Legal Systems curriculum:

• Environmental law; environmental protection; environmental contracts; civil liability for environmental damage;
• Protection of physical and mental health; protection of minors' and vulnerable persons' health; privacy protection;
• Environmental crimes and criminal liability; international environmental crimes; criminal law and health risks; environmental crimes and organized crime;
• Energy law; energy communities; commons;
• Sustainable business; sustainability reporting; due diligence in supply chains; stakeholder engagement in environmental and health protection; sustainable investments;
• Workers' protection and workplace safety; occupational health and diseases; smart working; ecological transition and labor rights;
• Sports law; sustainable sports; sustainability of sports events and infrastructure; protection of athletes’ mental health; doping; minors in competitive sports; biometric technologies and health data privacy; sports clubs and associations;
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) for ecological transition; AI in early diagnosis and health prevention; legal regulation of AI for environmental and health applications; AI and mental health; environmental sustainability of AI;
• Regulation and governance of hospitals, healthcare companies, third sector organizations, social enterprises, and benefit corporations working in health and environment;
• Pharmaceutical patents, competition in the pharmaceutical market, unfair commercial practices affecting health and the environment;
• Family health, right to housing, minors’ physical and psychological well-being; parenting and ecological transition; climate crisis and intergenerational rights.

 

Curriculum: Dynamics of Historical, Economic and Social Systems

The main goal of the Dynamics of Historical, Economic and Social Systems curriculum is to investigate and propose new interpretations of the circulation of historical, economic, and social systems—including political and communication aspects—by assessing the applicability of systems dynamics techniques.

Systems dynamics is an approach to understanding the behavior of complex structures from a diachronic perspective. It focuses on feedback loops and delays that influence the behavior of entire systems. The core of the method lies in recognizing that a system’s structure often plays a role as significant as its individual components in determining its behavior.

Analyzing system dynamics should lead to the development of explanatory models that account for the circulation and success of particular models over others—not solely based on traditional notions of “prestige” or assumed “economic efficiency,” but rather through a new lens that incorporates the respect for common goods, ecological transition, the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI), and stakeholder engagement in environmental protection and in assessing the risks and opportunities posed by AI across historical, economic, socio-cultural, and linguistic systems at national and international levels.

In particular, the curriculum aims to deepen the study of the dynamics and socio-economic, historical, and communicative varieties of capitalism in a historical perspective, also through case studies and international comparisons. Examples of potential research projects include:

• Welfare systems and labor markets;
• Economic growth theories;
• Processes of market integration and globalization;
• The impact of changes in national and international political institutions;
• The impact of AI adoption;
• Environmental and health protection;
• Related transformations in legal and political communication on a global scale.

Moreover, the curriculum seeks to train researchers capable of analyzing processes of change through an integrated approach combining legal, economic, sociological theories, discourse analysis, and empirical research. Candidates will acquire both strong theoretical foundations and mastery of standard and non-standard research methodologies and techniques in the relevant fields.

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Model Based Public Planning, Policy Design and Management

The PhD program - curriculum "Model Based Public Planning, Policy Design and Management" - focuses on the application of the System Dynamics methodology to promote a learning-oriented approach in public sector performance management and governance, aimed at designing and implementing sustainable policies.

The program is conducted entirely in English.

By attending the program, PhD candidates will learn how modeling the dynamics of a complex system (e.g., corporate, inter-corporate, etc.) can support collaborative governance, address "wicked" social issues, and achieve sustainable outcomes for the community.

"Wicked" social issues characterize most governmental planning, with specific concern for social matters. These are complex political problems marked by high risk and uncertainty and significant interdependence among the variables involved. Such issues cannot be confined within the boundaries of a single organization or referred to specific administrative levels or ministerial areas. They are characterized by dynamic complexity, involving multi-level, multi-actor, and multi-sectoral challenges. Examples of such issues include: traffic congestion, societal aging, unemployment, youth disengagement, education, social cohesion, domestic violence, child abuse, crime, corruption, terrorism, poverty, refugee migration flows, homelessness, climate change, and natural disasters.

Scientific Advisor: Prof. Carmine Bianchi

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Legal Systems Dynamics

The main purpose of the curriculum "Legal Systems Dynamics" is to seek a new explanation for the theory of the circulation of legal systems, evaluating whether it is possible to use System Dynamics techniques.

System Dynamics is an approach to understanding the behavior of complex systems over time. It involves feedback loops and delays that affect the behavior of the entire system. The foundation of the method is the recognition that the structure of any system is often as important in determining its behavior as the individual components themselves. The analysis of the dynamics in the circulation of models should lead us to create flow diagrams that explain the circulation and the success of one model over another, beyond the outdated explanations of "prestige" or the presumed "economic efficiency" of the model itself.

At the same time, it will be a way to validate classifications and taxonomies in general, the theory of formants, the circulation of legal flows, and the transplantation of systems, also in light of the export of legal models within the framework of legal development cooperation programs. It will also reconstruct, both at the macro-comparative and micro-comparative levels, the evolution of major contemporary legal and social systems, in light of the principles of Systematics.

Scientific Advisor: Prof. Antonello Miranda

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Dynamics of Historical, Economic, and Social Systems

The main purpose of the curriculum "Historic, Economic and Social Systems Dynamics" is to seek a new explanation for the theory of the circulation of historical, economic, and social systems (including political aspects), evaluating whether it is possible to use System Dynamics techniques.

System Dynamics is an approach to understanding the behavior of complex systems over time. It involves feedback loops and delays that impact the behavior of the entire system. The foundation of the method is the recognition that the structure of any system is often as important in determining its behavior as the individual components themselves. The analysis of the dynamics in the circulation of models should lead to the creation of flow diagrams that explain the circulation and success of one model over another, beyond the outdated explanations of "prestige" or the presumed "economic efficiency" of the model itself.

Specifically, the aim is to deepen the study of the dynamics and socioeconomic varieties of capitalism from a historical perspective, including through the use of case studies and international comparisons. Examples of possible research projects include: the varieties of capitalism; welfare and labor market systems; economic growth theory; national and international economic institutions; and the processes of market integration and globalization.

Furthermore, the program aims to train researchers capable of analyzing change processes based on a close integration between sociological theories and empirical research, acquiring both a theoretical-conceptual preparation and mastery of the main methodologies and techniques of social research, both standard and non-standard.

Scientific Advisor: Prof. Giulia Adriana Pennisi