The aim of this area of activity is to investigate  the political logic of institutional and policy genesis, stability, transformation, stalemate.

Politics has to do with problem solving (finding solutions to collective challenges) and consensus building (drumming up social and electoral support for governmental institutions and policies). In liberal democracies there is always a tension between these two “missions” of the political sphere.

But why are some democracies more capable  than others to produce efficient, effective and equitable policy solutions? How do they succeed in balancing and reconciling institutional performance, social cohesion and political legitimacy?

These are the broad questions lying at the heart of research and debate in this area. The main contexts of reference are the Italian political system (at the national and sub-national level) and the EU system, in a wide comparative perspective. Most activities are carried out within the Laboratory of Comparative Politics and Public Philosophy (LPF).