Abstract

PEREIRA, Lilia; DIAZ, Jazmín; PEREIRA, Morela  and  SUAREZ, Wendolin. Influence of the Bureaucratic-Populist Model in Research Management: Case University of Zulia . Revista de Ciencias Sociales [online]. 2008, vol.14, n.3, pp.614-631. ISSN 1315-9518.

Venezuelan public administration has been impregnated by the bureaucratic-populist model established since the beginning of the democratic period. The research process, however, has followed its own patterns. The following work, based on these facts, has the goal of reviewing such a process in three schools representative of the everyday academic world at the University of Zulia (LUZ). The final goal was to evaluate and determine to what point the academic units in charge of the research process display these behaviours or have been governed by the bureaucratic-populist model. The methodology consisted of a review of official documents and specialized bibliography on this topic, as well as interviews with research unit directors (2007) and surveys with accredited researchers, members of the Programa de Promocion al Investigador (PPI, Researchers Promotion Program) in 2006. Results show that management of the research process, as well as of the rest of the university’s processes, do follow the bureaucratic-populist model, while the research itself showcases flexible multifunctional and organizational forms that adapt to circumstances. Conclusions were that University management remains stuck in traditional formats, in contrast to the researchers who continue to advance based on their environments and the challenges that they raise.

Keywords : Research management; bureaucratic-populist model; Universidad del Zulia.