The articulation between the Theory of the State—a field of knowledge historically constructed on interdisciplinary foundations—and Constitutional Law enables the development of research grounded in the perception of political and legal issues concerning the role of the State in the contemporary world, in the processes of formation of political and social actors who struggle for their rights, generating new ways of acting to produce such rights, as well as in the creation (or even the risk of deinstitutionalization) of new constitutional mechanisms. It is important to emphasize that the area of concentration treats both fields of knowledge—Theory of the State and Constitutional Law—in a regime of permanent association, both with regard to research methods and to the subjects investigated. Therefore, from the perspective of both the abstract formulation of the area of concentration and the concrete practice of research within the PPGD at PUC-Rio, one finds a network of notions, concepts, problems, and approaches that traverse Theory of the State and Constitutional Law.

This constant exchange constitutes the identity of the PPGD at PUC-Rio, which aims to conduct research that significantly deepens the analysis of problems related to Constitutional Law while enriching the conceptual reflection of the Theory of the State. Thus, within this area of concentration, constitutional issues are investigated on solid conceptual foundations rooted in the broader humanities, alongside the construction of knowledge concerning the activity and structure of the State, which incorporates significant legal notions and debates—an approach often neglected by other social sciences.

Finally, the area of concentration in Theory of the State and Constitutional Law has proven to be well-suited to contemporary agendas of reflection and research. On the one hand, the economic and social crisis experienced in many countries since 2008 and the COVID-19 health crisis have been compounded by the environmental crisis dating back to the 1970s, requiring graduate-level research to undertake the effort of understanding the causes of such crises and the changes in State action necessary either to prevent similar crises or to mitigate their effects. Accordingly, the need to restructure both the framework and actions of the State has imposed an agenda of reconfiguring its financial, social, cultural, environmental, and economic instruments of action. On the other hand, these crises have catalyzed the rise of authoritarian political actors and movements advocating the dismantling of hard-won rights and of the constitutional orders that enshrined them. This context has also underscored the urgency of reflecting on constitutional institutions and on the need to reinforce them against forces openly seeking their extinction. It can thus be concluded that, in the present context, the area of concentration of the PPGD at PUC-Rio has emerged as a significant theoretical space for investigating the principal contemporary practical challenges affecting State activity, the creation and preservation of rights, and the defense of constitutional institutions.