Between scientific legitimation and cultural legitimation: transformations in the field of Integrative and Complementary Practices

Abstract

The National Policy on Integrative and Complementary Practices (NPICP) was published 15 years ago, and between 2017 and 2018 it saw two phases of growth and increased from 5 to 29 modalities of Integrative and Complementary Practices (ICP), namely an increase of 24 new practices within a year. The scope of this article is to understand the conditions for such transformations in the ICPs in the Unified Health System (SUS), reflecting upon how social actors interpret these changes. Thus, semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight interlocutors, analyzed in the light of Pierre Bourdieu’s field theory. The results show that the expansion of the NPICP, motivated by political-institutional factors, is comprehended in two matrices of thought that are related to the cultural and scientific legitimation of the ICPs in the SUS. The conclusion drawn is that the rapid expansion of the NPICP generated a crisis in the field, showing the need for a restructuring dialogue with its social bases.