
Maria Asensio
Scientific Commission
Visiting associate professor at ISCTE-IUL, integrated researcher at the Center for Research and Studies in Sociology (CIES-IUL) and senior technician (inter-career mobility) at the Strategy and Studies Office of the Ministry of Economy and the Sea. Member of the Board of the Institute for Public and Social Policy (IPPS-IUL), member of the scientific committee of the PhD in Public Policy. She studied political science and sociology at the Complutense University of Madrid (1992), a master’s degree in social sciences at the Center for Advanced Studies in Social Sciences (CEACS) of the Juan March Institute for Studies and Research in Madrid (1994) and a doctorate in political science at the Autonomous University of Madrid (2001). She is a Doctoral Fellow of the Juan March Institute for Studies and Research, a member of the Spanish Social Policy Network and a member of the Portuguese Political Science Association. She has taught at the following universities: University of Coimbra (2001-2008), University of Évora (2008-2011), ISCSP-UL (2011-2018), Universidade Aberta (2013-2016) and ISCTE (2010-2012, since 2017). She has participated in several research projects, including the Norface-funded project (2014-2018): “Healthdox: The Paradox of Health State Future”, or the project funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (2001-2005): “Political Economy of Social Policy Institutions”. She recently coordinated the report: “CAF Challenges to Promote Public Sector Capacity” under the Portuguese Presidency of the EU (EUPAN, 2021). Her areas of interest lie in the encounter between comparative political science and public policy. She is interested in exploring the influence of theoretical models, institutions and political preferences on the formulation of public policies, as well as analyzing the determinants of public opinion regarding the welfare system.