Heterarchy in a System of State and Society Cooperation on the Example of Social Policy in Moscow: Introduction of the Concept and Methodological Aspects

This paper aims at reviewing the connection between the network structures and hierarchies in contemporary public policy of the Russian Federation, based on the theoretical and practical experience of the policy network concept. It’s based on the hypothesis that the current political system of Russia has a number of issues that are not possible to solve with the help of only social networking, or only administrative resource. The situation indicates the need a hybrid strategy of cooperation between state and civil society and the introduction of the heterarchy concept as a form of governance and political decision-making. The article examines the interactions between the network of foster families and community councils with the Department of Social Protection of Moscow as an example of heterarchy.