Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

What is the state of evidence-based policy research in Brazil? This study examines the methods and practices in research assessing causality by conducting a systematic review of the peer-reviewed publications from 2006 to 2016. The objective is to map experimental and quasi-experimental designs applied to public policy accordingly to number of publications, affiliation of the authors, area of study, methodology and impact score. The methodology of the literature review follows the seven stages in carrying out a systematic review defined in the “Systematic reviews in the social sciences: A practical guide”, (Petticrew and Roberts, 2006)after defining the research question stated above: definition of an inclusion/exclusion criteria and a search strategy; quality assessment and selection of studies of interest; and, analyze and interpretation of the results. The policy implications of the research are threefold. First, the definition of the parameters of the literature review contributes to the construction of a body of knowledge in evidence-policy research in Brazil. Second, mapping the current research helps to find gaps in the quantity and quality of the research, supporting policymakers and funders to identify areas for investment. Finally, the descriptive nature of the literature review will provide insight to the characteristics of the Brazilian policy analysis community, such as academic training, profession, sources of funding, and geographical distribution.