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The doctoral program in "System Dynamics" is based on an integrated multidisciplinary approach that aims to develop specific research-intervention skills, allowing students to acquire a "key to understanding" the relationships between the observed phenomena dynamics in various social systems and the underlying causal structures.

This "key to understanding" focuses on the use of a methodology called "System Dynamics." This methodology allows students to acquire analytical and diagnostic skills to support processes of communication, learning, alignment, and improvement of mental models, as well as the adoption of normative systems, rules, and decision-making tools, leading to the formulation of "sustainable" policies over time and space in a long-term perspective.

A central aspect of this training path is the interdisciplinary, multidisciplinary, and transdisciplinary nature of the study, analysis, and learning process of System Dynamics. The involvement of multiple areas of knowledge has justified the creation of three different curricula—each more aligned with the specific areas of interest—but always closely interconnected, both in the training process (through common educational activities) and in the sharing of results and/or the potential activation of shared research initiatives.

More specifically, the doctoral program has been structured into three distinct curricula:

• Models for Improving Performance in the Public Sector
• Dynamics of Legal Systems
• Dynamics of Historical, Economic, and Social Systems

The curriculum program "Models for Improving Performance in the Public Sector" focuses on applying the System Dynamics methodology to promote a learning-oriented approach in public sector performance management and governance, aimed at designing and implementing sustainable policies.

The program is conducted entirely in English.

By attending the program, doctoral students will learn how modeling the dynamics of a complex system (e.g., corporate, inter-corporate, etc.) can support collaborative governance to address "wicked" social issues and achieve sustainable outcomes for the community. These are complex political problems, characterized by high risk and uncertainty and a high degree of interdependence among related variables. Examples of such problems include traffic congestion, aging societies, unemployment, youth disengagement, education, social cohesion, domestic violence, child abuse, crime, corruption, terrorism, poverty, refugee migration flows, homelessness, climate change, and natural disasters.

The main objective of the curriculum program "Dynamics of Legal Systems" is to seek a new explanation for the theory of legal systems' circulation, evaluating whether it is possible to use system dynamics techniques. System Dynamics constitutes an approach to understanding the behavior of complex systems over time. It deals with feedback loops and delays that impact the behavior of the entire system. The basis of the method is the recognition that the structure of any system is often as important in determining its behavior as the individual components themselves. Analyzing the dynamics of circulation models should lead us to the realization of explanatory flow diagrams of the circulation itself and the success of a given model over another, even beyond the obsolete explanations of "prestige" or presumed "economic efficiency" of the model.

Simultaneously, it will serve as a way to validate classifications and taxonomies in general, the theory of formants, the circulation of legal flows, the transplantation of systems, also in light of the export of legal models as part of legal development cooperation programs, and also to reconstruct, at both macrocomparative and microcomparative levels, the evolution of the main contemporary legal and social systems, in light of the principles of Systematics.

The main goal of the curriculum program "Dynamics of Historical, Economic, and Social Systems" is to seek a new explanation for the theory of the circulation of historical, economic, and social systems (including political aspects), assessing whether system dynamics techniques can be applied. The basis of the method is the recognition that the structure of any system is often as important in determining its behavior as the individual components themselves. Analyzing the dynamics of circulation models should lead to the creation of explanatory flow diagrams of the circulation itself and the success of a given model over another, even beyond obsolete explanations of "prestige" or presumed "economic efficiency" of the model.

Specifically, the program aims to deepen the study of the dynamics and socioeconomic varieties of capitalism from a historical perspective, using case studies and international comparisons.

Examples of potential research projects include: varieties of capitalism, welfare systems, and labor markets; economic growth theory; national and international economic institutions; and processes of market integration and globalization.

Additionally, the program aims to train researchers capable of analyzing processes of change based on a close integration of sociological theories and empirical research, gaining both theoretical-conceptual training and mastery of the main methodologies and techniques of social research, both standard and non-standard.

The proposed PhD program, depending on the curriculum in which it is articulated, is mainly aimed at training experts who can:

• Start an academic career at qualified national and international universities and research centers, and propose participation in "think tank" working groups;
• Start a career in Public Administrations, in Italy or abroad, such as municipalities, provinces, regions, public service companies, etc.;
• Support, as consultants, public administration decision-makers in analyzing and evaluating the quality and sustainability of policies and development strategies to be adopted;
• Work in public administration (e.g., state and local governments, public services, healthcare organizations);
• Work in NGOs, non-profits, economic sectors, and community-based organizations;
• Work as managers or executives in the public and private sectors with extensive international competence, enabling the evaluation of the quality and sustainability of corporate policies and strategies and their implementation;
• Work as managers in international trade and business;
• Work as executives or officials in international and European organizations.

The doctoral program will also enable students to work in support of, or within, banks and other financial intermediaries, developing skills and capabilities in these sectors.