Iseb, a school of government: developmentalism and the qualification of technicians and managers

Abstract

This article looks at the Higher Institute of Brazilian Studies (Instituto Superior de Estudos Brasileiros — Iseb) as a federal teaching and research institution based on the concept of developmentalism taken straight from the historical annals of Brazilian economic thinking. Developmentalism provides the motivation behind the historiographical investigation used in this research. The Iseb functioned as a school of government that, through its Standard Course, helped qualify technicians and administrators at a post-graduate level, and produced research that was the basis of public policies. Technicians and administrators was how public managers were designated at that time. The ideas put forward by the Iseb are part of the tradition of Brazilian critical social thinking and have influenced public administration, both in terms of qualifying professionals and in the decisions taken by administrators. The Iseb is, therefore part of the history of education in administration and reviving its activities as a school of government, which were autonomous and independent, may contribute to the present, and perennial debate over the role of the State and, in particular, that of the public administrator.