Capacidade digital do Estado: conceito, trajetória histórica e evidências empíricas

Abstract

This thesis aims to analyze the digital as an essential dimension of state capacity, the digital capacity. Digital technologies, seen as "means of power of general interest", are objects of study in several fields. In Political Science, there is growing interest in the use of digital technologies in the public sector. A major gap in the specialized literature regarding the relationship between the state and digital technologies resides in the absence of ontological analyses of digitalization. While many studies identify what the digital can do and what it has not done, there are few formulations that address what the digital is — considering the abilities brought to the state structure after decades of digitalization. This dichotomy, known as revolution/normalization, is the main research problem, as it imposes limitations on theoretical and conceptual, historical and empirical aspects. The central question is: what is the digital within the state structure? The hypothesis is that the digital has become a consolidated dimension of state capacity. Fully capable states need to achieve high digital capabilities. Concept-building techniques, bibliographic and historical analysis, and quantitative methods are employed to demonstrate the plausibility of this hypothesis. The concept of digital capacity is developed within a framework of "necessary and sufficient conditions" that comprises three dimensions: digital apparatus, control of digital space, and digital interaction. This conceptualization combines the perspective of state capacities with an ontological-semantic approach to concept-building. Digital capacity is measured by establishing the Digital Capacity Index (DCI), which covers the 193 UN member countries for the period between 2001 and 2022. The analysis of the historical trajectory of state digitalization, divided into three waves, demonstrates that the state is a primary actor. Wars have played decisive roles, consistently aligning with the bellicist theory. The digitalization process exhibits a dynamic nature with constant interactions between the state and society. The dominant perspectives on public administration in each wave influence this process. The empirical analyses supported the plausibility of the presented hypothesis, revealing that digital capacity is associated with relevant historical factors and interrelated with other state capacities, as expected from historical, theoretical, and empirical viewpoints.