Phd in COMMUNICATION, SOCIAL RESEARCH AND MARKETING

Thesis title: Ecosistemi di servizio pubblico e invecchiamento attivo: un’analisi multi-livello della creazione di public value nei servizi sanitari, sociali e culturali

Demographic ageing represents one of the most significant social transformations of the twenty-first century, posing major challenges to public welfare systems. This dissertation examines the mechanisms of public value creation within public service ecosystems for older adults, integrating Public Service Logic (PSL) with Positive Psychology to understand how health, social, and cultural services contribute to seniors’ well-being. The thesis adopts a sequential mixed-methods design articulated in three complementary studies. The first, exploratory in nature, conducts a scoping review of management and digital health literature, analysing the role of digital platforms as infrastructures for inclusion and value co-creation in public healthcare. The second, qualitative, investigates, through a case study of Rome’s 8th Municipal District, how local social services generate public value and psychological well-being (PERMA) through proximity relationships and caring practices. The third study, quantitative, examines creative tourism as an experiential context for healthy ageing, measuring the impact of cultural activities on the fulfilment of the psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness (SDT). The findings outline a multi-level model of public value creation oriented toward well-being, connecting digital infrastructures, community-based services, and cultural practices. The dissertation contributes to the literature on PSL and public value by expanding its experiential dimension and provides practical insights for rethinking public services as enabling ecosystems of prosperity and participation in ageing societies.