An Integrative Pathway Between Psychology and Public Policy-Making Towards the Governance of Changing Social Scenarios

Contemporary societies are undergoing rapid and profound transformations—economic, technological, social, and environmental—increasingly challenging the capacity of public governance to effectively manage social and structural complexity. In response, new governance paradigms promoting inclusive and participatory approaches are emerging with the aim of increasing the capability of public policy-making to effectively grasp social demands. This paper aims to foster the potential synergies between participatory policy-making and semiotic psychology, building on the constructivist and psychoanalytical frameworks. Moving beyond the traditional, medicalized, and normalizing stances characterizing mainstream psychological approaches, we advocate for a framework capable of addressing the symbolic and emotional foundations of the social reality driving individual and collective behaviors. This is expected to foster the debate about the intersection between psychology and public policy-making, emphasizing the critical role of semiotic dynamics in the structural and political transformations.