THE COMPUTATIONAL TURN IN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION: A METHODOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK FOR AI-INTEGRATED RESEARCH

The research explores the structural metamorphosis of public administration research triggered by the "computational turn," where the state increasingly functions as a continuous data-generating machine.Traditional methodologies, rooted in static statistical models and qualitative heuristics, are found insufficient for capturing the non-linear dynamics of modern governance.The primary objective of this work is to systematize a new methodological framework for AIintegrated research, facilitating a shift from ex-post evidence-based policy to real-time, data-driven governance.The study establishes a taxonomic classification of AI tools, focusing on Natural Language Processing for regulatory mining, Machine Learning for predictive analytics, and Agent-Based Modeling for ex-ante policy simulations.A significant portion of the analysis addresses the critical challenges of validity and reliability inherent in nondeterministic models.The author emphasizes the "Black Box" problem and the necessity of Explainable AI as a mandatory methodological requirement to ensure transparency and democratic accountability, aligning with the principles of the EU AI Act.The practical utility of this framework is demonstrated through a case study on Algorithmic Regulatory Impact Analysis.Utilizing a Legal-BERT pipeline and network analysis on a corpus of 15,000 regulatory acts, the study identifies a 12% contradiction rate within digital policies-a task that would be logistically impossible using manual legal-dogmatic methods.These findings highlight how computational tools can quantify structural dependencies and identify "legal deadwood" to streamline administrative environments.Ultimately, the article concludes that the transition toward Algorithmic Governance requires a new "Methodological Minimum" for researchers, combining legal and social knowledge with data science and computational ethics.By integrating "human-in-the-loop" principles, the science of public administration can evolve into a proactive, predictive discipline capable of navigating the complexities of the digital age.