About the Journal

The cientific journal Administrar lo Público is a periodic publication of the Centro de Investigación y Capacitación en Administración Pública (CICAP) of the Universidad de Costa Rica (UCR) which aims to bring the university and scientific communities closer to society in general through topics of interest in the field of public management and innovation, public policies, public administration, citizen participation, social sciences and economic sciences.
 
In accordance with the Regulations of CICAP, the journal has the following objectives (Resolution R-292-2019):
  1. Publish scientific research results in the field of Public Administration, from organizations linked to public management and innovation whose purpose is relevance, and the achievement of inclusive social and economic well-being.
  2. Share the relationship between research results with teaching and social action in order to complement the efforts made by the University of Costa Rica to support improvements in public management and innovation.
  3. Strengthen periodic scientific publication, supported by joint work between academic units of the University of Costa Rica with other national and international academic, scientific or administrative entities, for the joint dissemination of research, teaching and social action results on Public Administration.
  4. Support the continuous education and training of researchers, teachers and students with local cases for a better understanding of the discipline and that allows improvement in the management and innovation of the public.
  5. Promote the production of publications that add value to the development of the discipline.
  6. Promote the dissemination of the research results, and results from teaching and social action projects in the management and innovation of the public in various in-person and virtual forums, national and international, with special attention to feedback to the academic units of the University of Costa Rica specialized in the Public Administration.
The Administrar lo Público Journal is electronic, refereed, and free to publish and access.

Aim

To develop scientific and academic publications inspired by in depth reflection and analysis of Public Administration issues that cover areas of vital significance for the transformation of public management in the context of a society with dizzying and accelerated changes and innovations that must be addressed by the public sector in such a way that they satisfy social, economic, technological, and environmental.

Target audience

The journal Administrar lo Público has the following profiles as its target audience:
  • Professors, researchers and extension workers with the possibility of publishing their work in a specialized work on Public Administration.
  • Students have access to documented intervention experiences in Public Administration.
  • Social science professionals to understand the interaction of successful public interventions to implement similar measures in their work spaces.
  • The general public to understand the advantages, challenges and difficulties in the implementation of good practices in the Costa Rican and international Public Sector.

Periodicity

The periodicity of the Journal is annual. The number corresponds to the months from January to December, being published continoursly. The reception period is open troughtout the year up until October to be published in the current year. Articles received from November onwards will be published on the following year. 
 
Exceptionally, a call may announce a specific period, in order to ensure the sense of convenience of the author and in order to contribute to scientific dissemination in a timely manner.
 
National and international spaces for promotion and dissemination will include the website, social networks, forums, seminars, conferences, podcasts, webinars, etc. in order to publicize the manuscripts published here.

Types of articles

The journal Administrar lo Público has the following publication categories:
 
Refereed categories:
  • Original publications: This is the main form of scientific periodical publication. It includes original scientific reports, complete articles, case studies and preliminary notes that inform about: results obtained, description of methods, techniques and devices; and new ideas are presented. A document belongs to this category when it contributes to considerably expanding the knowledge or understanding of a problem and is written in such a way that a competent researcher can repeat the experiments, observations, calculations or theoretical reasoning of the author and judge their conclusions and the accuracy of their work. The minimum length is 9,000 words and the maximum is 10,000 words, including text, tables and references.
  • Systematization of interventions: this  article type processes academic reports in an articulated manner in order to present the main results of the basic or applied research program or project, using descriptive narrative to present the report in an abbreviated manner, relying on the methods, findings, conclusions and recommendations to continue investigating the matter. The minimum length is 4,500 words and the maximum is 5,000 words, including text, tables and references.
  • Research advances: reports from ongoing research projects are processed, presenting new, relevant information whose sense of opportunity can contribute to decision-making or facilitate processes and procedures. The minimum length is 2,800 words and the maximum is 3,000 words, including text, tables and references.

Non-refereed categories:

  • Systematization of teaching or social extension: this category exposes results of teaching or social extension projects, making visible information related to the results and impact generated by these projects in the intervened population. This visualization of the incidence and sense of opportunity in the intervened population is intended to document the activities that reinforce the University-Society relationship. The minimum length is 4,500 words and the maximum is 5,000 words, including text, tables and references.
  • Secondary publications: publication that is responsible for the preparation of summaries and indexing of primary publications, as well as the storage and retrieval of the information contained therein, such as a book review. The maximum length is 1,000 words, including text, tables and references.
  • Recapitulative studies: this is a production carried out on a specific topic, in which already published information is gathered, analyzed and discussed. The author must take into account all published works that have advanced the topic, or would have advanced it if they had been taken into consideration. The maximum length is 8,000 words, including text, tables and references.

Thematic areas

The Administrar lo Público journal is developed in the field of social and economic sciences, particularly in the disciplinary area of Public Administration, with emphasis on the following fields of specialty:
  • Access to public information,
  • Customs Administration and International Trade,
  • Public administration,
  • Administrative contracts and public procurement,
  • Internal control,
  • Open Government Data,
  • Diplomacy,
  • Evaluation of government programs,
  • Performance evaluation,
  • Public Finance and Budgets,
  • Public Management,
  • Governance,
  • Government,
  • Government and Public Policies,
  • Integrity,
  • Citizen participation,
  • Planning and prospective analysis,
  • Accountability,
  • Civil service and human talent management,
  • Public service,
  • Information and Communication Technologies for the Public Sector,
  • Transparency, and
  • Others related to the specialty. 

Process to Publish

The process to publish in ALP journal is as follows:
 
*Note. The reviewers do not know the name of the author, nor does the author know the names of the peer reviewers.
 
Fig. 1 - Process to Publish in ALP Journal
 
The use of the IMRYD Method (Introduction, Methods and Materials, Results and Discussion) is recommended for writing the article, as well as the use of APA Standards for referencing.
 
In general, the author must ensure that his or her article answers the following questions: What is the problem of the study? Why is this problem studied? How (method) and with what instruments (materials) is the problem studied? What is/are the finding(s) (results)? What contribution(s) or debate(s) to knowledge does it generate (discussion)?
 
The journal is published in letter size, for a width of 21.59 cm. by 27.94 cm. The publication of the main text will be done in color and in two columns.
 
CICAP reserves the right to accept or not the proposed work, which will be communicated via email or the corresponding platform.