Location:
Room 12.2.21 DCSPT - University of AveiroStart Date:
GOVCOPP Research Seminar | March 2026
The next GOVCOPP Research Seminar will take place on March 25, 2026. Join us between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.
March 25th, 2026
Room 12.2.21 (DCSPT)
13h-15h
Research Group PI2
Think Tanks as Policy Entrepreneurs on a Tilted Playing Field: Evidence from Serbia
Abstract
Abstract: Think tanks are commonly described as organizations that produce policy-relevant knowledge and seek to influence public policy. While existing research has examined their role in pluralist democracies, less attention has been paid to how they operate as policy entrepreneurs in hybrid regimes where institutional access is constrained and policymaking is highly centralized. This article examines how think tanks pursue policy influence under such conditions by integrating scholarship on think tanks with Kingdon’s Multiple Streams Approach (MSA). Focusing on Serbia as a case of a hybrid regime, the study conceptualizes think tanks as organizational policy entrepreneurs navigating a “tilted playing field” characterized by selective access to decision-makers, procedural consultations, and politicized media environments. Building on the MSA, the article develops seven hypotheses concerning think tanks’ strategies across the problem, policy, and political streams, including their reliance on alternative specification, long-term “softening up” of policy ideas, and the strategic combination of visible advocacy and behind-the-scenes engagement. By applying the MSA to a hybrid regime context, the study contributes to the literature in two ways: empirically, by examining think tank entrepreneurship in Serbia, and theoretically, by adapting the MSA to settings marked by executive dominance, limited institutional openness, and contested policy advisory systems.
Research Group TD
What determines loyalty to tourism events? A systematic literature review
Abstract
Despite the growing popularity of events in the scope of tourism, no literature review study provides a comprehensive view of factors influencing event loyalty. This paper conducts a systematic literature review to identify the drivers, the theoretical and methodological approaches adopted, and directions for future research. A bibliometric and a content analysis of 216 Scopus-indexed documents was undertaken following the PRISMA protocol and using the VOSviewer software. Findings reveal a remarkable growth in publications after 2010 particularly on cultural events. Most studies lack a clear theoretical foundation, adopt quantitative methodologies, namely structural equation modelling, and use attitudinal measures of loyalty. While drivers like satisfaction, quality, and motivation have been extensively examined, factors like psychological well-being and self-development remain underexplored. The findings offer valuable insights for tourism stakeholders seeking to enhance event loyalty and highlight the need for diversified approach and conceptualizations of loyalty. Keywords: Events, factors, loyalty, bibliometric analysis, content analysis.
Research Group CIS
The Environmental Quality Rhetoric: Heaving Women’s Political Leadership, Economic Development and Governance Strings in Africa
Abstract
Environmental sustainability remains a pressing concern for developing economies, particularly in Africa, where rapid economic growth and social development intersect with environmental vulnerabilities. The rising voices of women in political leadership (gender), the momentum of institutional reforms, and efforts to sustain economic development are noteworthy. This study examines both the linear and non-linear effects of women in political leadership, economic development (ECODEV), and governance quality on environmental outcomes, as measured by the load capacity factor (LCF) and carbon emissions (CO2e). Focusing on West African economies from 1996 to 2022 and employing Panel Corrected Standard Errors and Feasible Generalised Least Squares estimators for robustness, the study finds that gender has a statistically significant and positive impact on LCF, suggesting that increased female representation is associated with improved environmental quality. However, this positive effect is offset by a rise in CO2e, indicating that gender alone may not be sufficient to mitigate environmental risks in the region. While economic development is often seen as a route to progress, this study shows that ECODEV significantly reduces LCF and worsens environmental risks by increasing CO2e. Additionally, institutional quality, derived from principal components analysis, exhibits counterintuitive effects: it reduces LCF and increases CO2e. Financial development notably increases LCF but only slightly raises CO2e, revealing a trade-off between financial growth and environmental sustainability. Regarding moderation, this study finds that governance quality diminishes the positive environmental benefits of gender. Key policy recommendations were proposed. Keywords: Environmental Quality. Institutional Quality. Panel Corrected Standard Errors. West Africa. Financial Development
Research Group SAD
Project Introduction - REVITA: Evidence-Based Strategies for Revitalising Low-Density Territories in Portugal
Abstract
Low-density territories (LDTs) in mainland Portugal are experiencing a cumulative cycle of demographic decline and population ageing that increasingly threatens their long-term viability. Once certain thresholds are crossed—particularly the loss of working-age population and the closure of essential services—these dynamics tend to become self-reinforcing and difficult to reverse. Despite growing policy attention, public interventions have often remained fragmented and territorially undifferentiated, failing to address the diversity of demographic trajectories and the contextual factors shaping territorial attractiveness and population retention. This presentation discusses findings from the REVITA project, which develops a territorialised framework to analyse demographic vulnerability and territorial attractiveness across Portuguese low-density municipalities. The analysis combines demographic indicators with key dimensions influencing territorial resilience, including housing conditions, economic dynamism, access to services of general interest and accessibility, territorial centrality and institutional capacity. The results reveal substantial heterogeneity among low-density territories, suggesting that similar policy instruments may produce different effects depending on territorial contexts and structural conditions. The presentation therefore reflects on the implications of these differentiated dynamics for territorial policy and evidence-based decision-making.
Registrations for lunch+seminar are open until March 18th. Registrations just for the seminar are open until March 24th.
