Desarrollo Económico. Revista de Ciencias Sociales
Desarrollo Económico - Revista de Ciencias Sociales promotes the approach to social sciences through articles and notes based on the logical rigor of the arguments and their corresponding empirical foundation. It also channels the production of social science researchers in the spirit of a multidisciplinary publication. As of 2020, the journal is open access.
Instituto de Desarrollo Económico y Social
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Education and Democracy in the Southern Cone. Unraveling a Complex Link
This article examines the links between education and democracy in three Southern Cone countries: Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay. Specifically, it tests the 'culturalist' hypothesis, which proposes that attitudes and beliefs considered favorable for the emergence and sustainability of republican institutions are more deeply rooted in higher-educated strata. The analysis is conducted using non-parametric tests (Gamma coefficient, odds ratio) based on data provided by the World Values Survey. The results reveal that this type of relationship varies depending on the type of belief or attitude considered, the social group in question, and the country in which it occurs. Thus, rather than confirming or rejecting the hypothesis, the results suggest that different aspects of democracy are valued differently depending on the educational level of the population.
Copyright (c) 2025 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0
Partisan economists in the transition to democracy: diagnoses, guidelines and economic policies in non-majority parties during the 1983 election campaign Abstract
This work analyzes the economic diagnoses, guidelines, and debates that took place in Argentina during the 1983 election campaign, focusing on economists affiliated with minority political parties. The primary source is a series of reports published by the weekly magazine Mercado, although testimonies, newspaper clippings, public statistics, and other sources were also included, with an emphasis on highlighting the main controversies surrounding the economy during the transition to democracy. Analyzing the electoral rhetoric of economists affiliated with parties of lesser political influence than the Radical Civic Union (UCR) and the Justicialist Party (PJ) reveals distinctive elements in the economic policy consensus of the period. These economists constitute a central actor in understanding the economic policy debates during the critical juncture of 1983 and, ultimately, in comprehending the challenges facing democracy. As demonstrated, the economists studied presented a wide range of proposals that combined issues such as price stabilization, public spending adjustments, external debt repayment, economic reactivation, and a development plan. While there were more or less evident differences, the liberal, Keynesian, and developmentalist diagnoses represented hybrid ideological frameworks that reflect dynamic perspectives transcending the consensus of the major political parties.
Circular 1050 and Indexed Debts. Social Demands and Political Responses during Argentina’s Democratic Transition
This article contributes to the scholarship on Argentina’s democratic transition by analyzing indexed household debt generated under Circular 1050 as a critical lens through which to interpret the shifting relationship between state, economy, and society. Departing from the predominant focus on public debt in existing literature, it undertakes a socio-historical reconstruction of private indebtedness at the intersection of authoritarian rule and democratic restoration. These debts –produced through institutionalized indexation mechanisms amidst chronic inflation– serve as a revealing site for examining how inherited economic structures mediated social demands and shaped political responses during a period of profound systemic transformation. The article posits that indexed household debt functioned not only as an economic burden but also as a social and political signifier, illuminating processes of regime delegitimation as well as the cycles of expectation and disenchantment that accompanied the democratic transition. By foregrounding the dynamics surrounding Circular 1050, the study sheds light on often-overlooked dimensions of the period, emphasizing both the institutional continuities and the contested arenas of public debate that characterized Argentina’s passage from dictatorship to democracy.
The social assistance policy of Javier Milei´s government: an analysis of its first year
The article analyses the social assistance policy of Milei´s government, with special attention to its first year. First, it argues that the dynamic of the mode of management of this policy was characterized by adjustment, political disciplining and the search for legitimacy. Second, that this dynamic followed an internationalized form through the support of various international credit agencies. Third, as a result of this political dynamic, the mode of management tended toward reorganization, partial refunctionalization, a relative reduction of its material weight, and reinforcement of subalternizing pattern toward beneficiaries. Fourth, despite this reduction in material weight, it remained historically high, confirming that the massive mode of social assistance policy management continues as the hard core of political domination. Fifth, that the social assistentialization of the social policy persisted under Milei´s mode of management, within the broader context of the growth of the relative surplus population, the competition among nation-states, and the crisis of social insurance systems.
Equilibria in the sovereign debt market of the province of Buenos Aires: an approximation using a Logit model (1995–2022)
We analyze the sovereign debt market of the Province of Buenos Aires using a model that accounts for the existence of multiple equilibria. The probability of default is estimated through a Logit model with data for the period 1995–2022, and the analysis focuses on the years 2016–2019, when the opening of the capital account and access to international markets facilitated a process of resource acquisition. The results show that the provincial borrowing capacity was more limited than what authorities assumed. The high dollarization of the debt and the concentration of short-term maturities increased financial stress in the years preceding the 2021 restructuring. The evidence suggests that official sustainability criteria overestimated the actual repayment capacity.
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Tres días en Camp David: un comentario y una reflexión sobre la globalización
Regional Structural Heterogeneity: Evidence for Argentina's Industrial Sector
This work aims to make two contributions to the state of art on social, productive and scientific-technological structural heterogeneity that characterizes the Argentine regions. First, through an analysis of structural heterogeneity between the main regions of Argentina, which is manifested in their respective industrial sectors in three dimensions: exports, innovation and productivity. The contribution of this document is focused par ticularly on the last dimension, which has not been thoroughly explored. Secondly, this work analyzes –in a stylized way– the possible link between those three dimensions. To meet these objectives, the regional data of the second ENDEI for manufacturing firms in the 2014-2016 period is used, complemented with provincial data for the year 2019.
Alain Touraine in the debate on the origins of Peronism
The debate on the origins of Peronism is a milestone in the history of social sciences in Argentina. Sociology itself took shape here, partly, in the heat of this dialogue. Our intention in this article is to explore the theoretical-sociological bases that underpinned it. We are particularly interested in analyzing how the theory of Latin American populisms proposed by the French sociologist Alain Touraine found their way in the discussion. We will focus especially on two stations of this debate: firstly, on the one established by Miguel Murmis and Juan Carlos Portantiero in their classic text of 1969; and secondly, on the one prepared by Juan Carlos Torre. We hope not only to review the influence of these authors from a new perspective, but also to contribute to the knowledge of the history of sociology in Argentina.
Agricultural ´diferimientos` policy in the province of San Juan and its main antecedents
The purpose of this paper is to analyze different development policies and their effects on the rural areas of the province of San Juan. In particular, we are interested in reviewing them in terms of the background of Law 22.021, which produced a substantial reorganization of the provincial agrarian structure. In order to carry out this research, an extensive bibliographical review and archival work were carried out. This research found that the agricultural deferral policy was influenced by a diversity of theoretical, political and ideological currents, from ECLAC studies and Dependency Theory to historical revisionism and provincial bloquism. On the other hand, developmentalist militarism translated these agendas within the Armed Forces. This sphere of discussion on development contrasted with its implementation in the 1990s, in a neoliberal context that eroded its critical and complex character. The changes that took place at the territorial level implied the reconversion of the wine industry and the promotion of olive growing. Both sectors were oriented to the export market, although with concentration and displacement of small producers.
Tobacco tax policy in Argentina. Diagnosis and harmonized proposals towards healthy taxation
Tobacco taxation in Argentina is the most complex within healthy taxation. It has several taxes and cross tax bases that coexist in an intricate sectoral and regional context. This study highlights the importance of tax design by analyzing the current structure of these taxes and a proposal for harmonization to help reduce tobacco consumption through price increases supported by more effective tax burdens. To this end, an approach to tobacco taxation in Argentina is made, exposing its complexity and particularities; proposing the need for a redesign aimed at making public health objectives more explicit; detailing the sectorial contradictions generated by the existence of the Special Tobacco Fund, as well as its implications both in the rest of the world and in the domestic market, through export duties. Tax instruments that lead to the correction of tobacco consumption are also studied. In line with international recommendations, an approach to a “harmonic” taxation for this good is proposed.
Concepción ampliada del trabajo, enfoque de capacidades y desarrollo social. Hacia una superación de la centralidad del trabajo en torno al mercado
The concept of work has historically been constructed from an individualistic and mercantilist perspective, as highlighted by various authors mentioned in this article. From here, it is argued that this perspective focused on the economic limits the achievement of goals around the social dimension of sustainable development. The need to broaden the definition of work to include unpaid work is defended. To argue this, the capabilities approach is used, first, reflecting on the different meanings of capabilities around paid work, to then provide another meaning of capabilities on unpaid work that expands freedoms related to psychosocial well-being and agency of individuals. The main contribution of the article is precisely to propose that this recognition of unpaid work could help overcome the limitations of work linked to the market and economic development, because it would open a way to guide the economy and society towards the social development of sustainable development.
Copyright (c) 2024 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0
Argentina’s Productive Development Policies: Post-Pande mic Strategies and Instruments
Globally, there has been a resurgence of interest in industrial policies, but there are still few empirical studies and a diversity of definitions prevails. In this context, we believe it is important to understand what the productive development policies (PDP) were in Argentina after the COVID-19 pandemic and how they were justified. Through a detailed analysis of the instruments used and the strategic plans, and using a definition and a taxonomy that allow us to make international comparisons, it is estimated that the country invested around 1% of GDP in these policies in 2021-2022. This figure is higher than that of other countries in the region and lower than that of developed countries. Likewise, it is identified that the PDPs were justified based on the need for economic reactivation, the trengthening of the productive sector and competitiveness, and inclusive and sustainable development. Most of the instruments intervene directly in the productive activities of companies. In terms of objectives, they focus on supporting small and medium-sized enterprises, promoting financial inclusion and fostering the adoption of technologies.
STI Policies in Santa Fe Province (1983–2023): Towards a Knowledge System for Regional Development
This paper examines the emergence and consolidation of Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI) policies in Santa Fe Province, Argentina, from 1983 to 2023, focusing on their design and implementation to address regional challenges and foster socioeconomic development. The trajectory is divided into five stages: democratic recovery (1983-2007), hierarchization (2007-2011), institutionalization and strategic projects (2011-2015), consolidation of the provincial STI system (2015-2019), and orientation towards innovation (2019-2023). In contrast to top-down federalization models, this paper emphasizes the active role of provinces and subnational STI policies, even anticipating or diverging from national trends. Using a qualitative approach grounded in Regional Innovation Systems and enriched by the concept of Knowledge Systems, the study explores both formal and informal factors shaping policies, knowledge production, and use. The trajectory is understood as a political and negotiated process that integrates diverse visions on the role of STI in local socioeconomic development, emphasizing active actor engagement and the importance of local and territorial connections.
The Global Technological Oligopoly, the Digital Periphery and Latin America
The objective of this paper is to analyze the economic and technological implications for Latin America of the consolidation of what we call a Global Technological Oligopoly made up of Western and Eastern technological giants: Google, Amazon, Meta, Apple, Microsoft, Alibaba, Tencent and Huawei. We observe the dynamics of competition and profitability of OTG capital and its relationship with certain features of the Latin American technology market. We analyze the cases of three large companies that develop accumulation strategies similar to those of the giants and are part of the group known as “tecnolatinas”: Mercado Libre, Magazine Luiza and Nubank. We rely on a bibliographic and documentary review of secondary sources (institutional documents, academic contributions and specialized press). We propose that the “coopetitive” and oligopolistic dynamics of the global technological market reinforces the subordinate techno-economic condition of Latin America, in an analysis that aims to contribute to the debates on peripheral development within the framework of current capitalism (global, digital and hyper-concentrated).
Federalismo y gobernanza de la salud pública. El papel de la coordinación horizontal a nivel estatal en durante la respuesta a Covid-19 en Brasil
El documento describe la pandemia de Covid-19 como un momento definitorio que impulsa una cascada de respuestas institucionales, al principio descoordinadas, pero que alcanzan un equilibrio más tarde para establecer una gobernanza multinivel (MLG) basada en la coordinación horizontal entre unidades subnacionales sobre áreas temáticas específicas. Este momento ofrece una oportunidad especial para observar la confrontación entre el gobierno federal y las unidades subnacionales en Brasil sobre la naturaleza de la respuesta y la prerrogativa de actuar. De especial interés para nuestra comprensión del impacto de Covid-19 en Brasil son dos cuestiones relacionadas. En primer lugar, ¿podemos hablar de las respuestas políticas "nacionales" a la pandemia como una desviación definitiva del patrón de interacción que caracteriza al federalismo democrático brasileño? En segundo lugar, en caso afirmativo, ¿cuáles son las implicaciones de este proceso transformador en términos de gobernanza de la salud pública? Más concretamente, ¿cómo afectan los cambios relevantes en la dinámica política del federalismo brasileño a la provisión de bienes de salud pública y a las perspectivas de gobernanza democrática? Nuestro análisis concluye que, al poner en tensión el patrón de cooperación entre el gobierno federal y las entidades subnacionales, el intento de Bolsonaro de retomar las prerrogativas presidenciales impulsó la mejora de las relaciones intergubernamentales (RIG) de los estados brasileños a nivel horizontal y, en consecuencia, del MLG por dominio político. Este cambio es un aspecto clave de lo que puede describirse a grandes rasgos como el reajuste de las fuerzas políticas y sociales que participan en la respuesta al reto global de la gobernanza de la salud pública en el marco de la Constitución de 1988.
Disability gap in access to education for children and adolescents in Argentina
One in ten children and adolescents worldwide live with disabilities and they represent one of the highest percentages of the out-of-school population. This article estimates the disability gap in access to education for children and adolescents in Argentina based on the UNICEF’s Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) carried out in the country in 2019-20. The results indicate that children and adolescents with disabilities are nearly 2 percentage points less likely to attend school than their peers without disabilities. The estimated disability gaps were larger for children and adolescents of lower secondary school age (12-14 years old), and for those with mobility, visual and intellectual impairments. Results also show a gap in the probability of enrollment using an alternative definition of disability, based on disability certificate.
Structural inequalities as limits to remunerative equity. The case of the main metropolitan region of Argentina (1974-2018)
The paper examines the changes in wage inequality, throughout different periods of economic policies, in the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area, which includes the City of Buenos Aires and twenty-four districts of the Province of Buenos Aires. The central thesis is that in order to achieve a thorough understanding of the distribution of labor remunerations, it is necessary to consider the productive heterogeneity in terms of its effects on the social structure of work and the way in which the different historical-structural cleavages condition that relationship. From this perspective, the persistence of an unbalanced productive structure conditions labor insertion and the hourly remunerations originated by such In order to examine inequality in labor remunerations and their changes over time, the paper applies a decomposition model of workers’ hourly labor remunerations, considering intra- and inter-inequality, as well as the relative sizes of the economic-occupational locations. The analysis is limited to the period 1974-2018, accounting for differentiated effects according to the political-economic regime of the different subperiods.
BRASIL EN LA TRAMPA DEL DESARROLLO ESTANCADO
Structural heterogeneity and in-work poverty under different political-economic cycles (1993-2021)
This paper focuses on the characteristics and evolution of Argentina’s working class’s poverty, under the different political and economic mandates, that the country has undergone over the last thirty years. An extended period in which different economic policies were induced and brought about different results regarding gross national product (GNP) and job creation. This paper seeks two objectives: a) analyzing the relationship between poverty among the working class, the labor market’s dynamics and the socio-occupational inequality under different political-economic cycles (1993-2021); and b) characterizing the mechanisms which explain poverty’s increase and decrease in each period. To answer such questions, the Homes Permanent Surveying’ micro data was consulted for a long a period of time in thirteen urban agglomerations, for which multi-varying and micro-level decompositions analyzing techniques were adopted.
Poverty and homelessness: a new study in the city of Buenos Aires
This study has two objectives: 1) to learn about the socioeconomic, labor, family, environmental and health conditions of homeless people in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires in 2021, 2) to evaluate the effectiveness and functioning of public policy interventions offered to these people and to propose alternatives that contemplate solutions to the surveyed problems, especially in the field of health. By means of a survey designed for a stratified random sample of 400 people according to neighborhood, gender and age, and taking into account the difficulties of sampling given the itinerant nature of the individuals surveyed, it was found that 75% of the people were men, mostly between 26 and 55 years of age, half of them without contact with family members, without help from state agencies, earning a meager income from informal activities and without knowing their organic health status. Moreover, practically more than two thirds reported depression, anguish and other psychological disorders. Likewise, 44% of those surveyed were homeless for the first time, and 39.6% of those who reported having been homeless for more than 5 years. In fact, 84% of the people surveyed said they did not want to go to the centers or “paradores” set up by the Government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires due to the violence and robbery they perceive. The main policy recommendation that emerges from this study is the need to create a new device with a multidimensional approach to treat first of all the mental and organic health problems of homeless people, and to reconvert the current housing centers of the City into places that promote their subsequent labor and family reintegration.
Argentina’s green export potential: an analysis of the green production space
Is it possible to harmonize a green export development strategy with the acceleration of economic growth in Argentina, and towards which sectors should public policy efforts be directed in order to achieve this? To answer these questions, this article constructs the “Green” product-space at 6 digits of disaggregation of the harmonized system of international trade and analyzes the economic complexity associated with each of its products, as well as its connections with the already competitive sectors of the country. In this way, the economic benefits associated with products that directly provide environmental services or are key to activities that reduce gas emissions can be weighed. The main results are summarized as follows: i) green products, in general, are complex products and their development would accelerate the economic growth of the countries; ii) however, the green products closest to the current productive capacities of Argentina are of low complexity and with low contribution to economic growth; iii) these results would justify the exploration of costs and benefits of carrying out productive policies that maximize the complexity of the green export basket to be developed and minimize the productive effort to achieve it. To this end, different selection criteria are proposed, which result in 30 products that could be the starting point for a green export development strategy for a given country.
Absolute Convergence of Output per Worker in Manufacturing and the Economy as a Whole
In this paper we revisit the empirical evidence of the hypothesis of absolute convergence across countries in 1950-2019, focusing on output per worker. We also test Rodrik’s (2013) hypothesis of absolute convergence in output per worker in manufacturing by using a newly built database which for the first time measures the former in terms of purchasing power parity, to be able to study the relationship between convergence in manufacturing and convergence across the economy in 1970-2018. We find robust evidence of cross-country absolute convergence in output per worker since 2000 and we consistently reject Rodrik’s hypothesis of absolute convergence in manufacturing along nonconvergence across the economy.
Waves and tides on the road to institutionalization. Metaphors and achievements in 40 years of feminist action
A partir de los antecedentes históricos de movilizaciones y demandas ligadas a cuestiones de género y al movimiento feminista, el trabajo recorre los 40 años desde la transición con la atención puesta en la acción de activistas y en la incorporación de sus demandas en la agenda estatal. El trabajo muestra que el recorrido fue sinuoso y conflictivo, con enorme heterogeneidad de actorxs y de propuestas. Las estrategias de los movimientos sociales, las propuestas de partidos políticos y las iniciativas gubernamentales – tanto en el plano legal como en políticas públicas – se desplegaron a lo largo de estos años en una multiplicidad de escenarios. La efervescencia social, la participación y la expresividad performática fueron y son los ingredientes de la movilización. En el plano de las instancias institucionales y en la reversión de desigualdades y discriminaciones de género queda mucho camino por recorrer.
Copyright (c) 2023 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/deed.es
After the #DemocraticConsolidation: Social networks, polarization and fake news
En las últimas cuatro décadas, las redes sociales digitales experimentaron una transformación sin precedentes, pasando de la inexistencia a desempeñar un papel fundamental en el ámbito político y social. La polarización era ideológica y no afectiva, y los procesos políticos estaban dominados por gobiernos, partidos, sindicatos y asociaciones empresarias. Hoy, la dinámica ha cambiado drásticamente. La deliberación en las democracias ya no se basa en largos intercambios filosóficos, sino en la circulación descentralizada de millones de micro-mensajes en espacios dominados por una élite de influencers. Este nuevo entorno también facilita la propagación de noticias falsas y teorías de conspiración, minando la confianza en las instituciones gubernamentales, en los medios de comunicación tradicionales y en la información educativa y científica. La sociedad se enfrenta, entonces, desafíos fundamentales relacionados con la gestión de la desinformación, la regulación de las redes sociales y la promoción de un diálogo político más constructivo en un contexto en el cual las mismas continuaran siendo una parte integral de la vida cotidiana de las y los ciudadanos.
Media and politics in 40 years of democracy in Argentina
El texto analiza la interacción compleja entre los medios de comunicación y la política en Argentina durante las últimas cuatro décadas. En particular, considera la forma en que factores históricos y cambios en el campo de los medios de comunicación, en las tecnologías y el periodismo moldearon la mediatización de la política e interactuaron con la (re)politización y polarización mediática. Además de adentrarse en las interacciones entre sistema de medios y sistema político, el trabajo alude a algunos cuestiones que afectan la calidad de la comunicación política democrática en la Argentina como los legados históricos y la persistencia de lógicas instrumentales y patrimonialistas; los obturados debates sobre regulación de medios y libertad de expresión; los opacos vínculos entre la judicialización de la política, servicios de inteligencia, sectores del periodismo y política; y las continuidades y discontinuidades entre el sistema mediático nacional y los sistemas de medios subnacionales en el federalismo argentino.
The environmental issue after the return to democracy in Argentina
El texto aborda la evolución de la cuestión ambiental en Argentina durante las últimas cuatro décadas de democracia. Muestra la existencia de dos procesos que marcharon en paralelo buena parte del período. Uno caracterizado por la creación de una nueva institucionalidad ambiental estatal y otro marcado con la expansión del ambientalismo social y el crecimiento de organizaciones profesionales y de base. Por ambas vías, la cuestión ambiental ha ganado presencia en la agenda pública y política en Argentina a lo largo de las décadas de democracia, con un aumento en la movilización social y la creación de instituciones y normativas relacionadas con el ambiente.
The impossible consolidation of the Council of the Judiciary in Argentina
El artículo se enfoca en el Consejo de la Magistratura Nacional de Argentina, el órgano encargado de la justicia federal y nacional, cuya integración ha sido motivo de debate y cambios a lo largo de los años. La falta de regulación en la Constitución respecto a la cantidad de integrantes que conforman el Consejo, ha llevado a una lucha política por su control, lo que podría comprometer su independencia. El artículo también analiza el modelo de gobernanza judicial en Argentina y otros países de América Latina. Se destaca que los consejos no han logrado equilibrar la independencia judicial y la rendición de cuentas, y en Argentina, han reflejado y amplificado la competencia política en su interior. Se argumenta que no existe un diseño institucional ideal y que su efectividad varía según el contexto político de cada país.
40 Years of Democracy: The Old and the New in the Politics of Argentine Economic Cycles
El ensayo analiza la economía política de Argentina a partir de 1983, y la compara con los ciclos político-económicos de posguerra en el SXX. Señalamos la sorprendente persistencia de ciclos con características similares a los predemocráticos, y la vez cambios clave en los actores económicos y su relación con el sistema político: la alianza ofensiva y su nueva vinculación con la centroderecha política, el surgimiento de una alianza defensiva con sindicatos más autónomos del Estado y el PJ y trabajadores informales, la modernización y diversificación del sector agropecuario que influye en los ciclos económicos y en la política, la hegemonía organizativa de la UIA en la industria, y el surgimiento de un los "unicornios", sector intensivo en tecnología con activismo político.
Four Decades of Federalism and Democracy: Trends and Surprises
Se analizan las peculiaridades del federalismo argentino y su impacto en la democracia y desarrollo del país a partir de 1983. La gran autonomía provincial, el alto desequilibrio fiscal vertical, el reparto irracional de la coparticipación entre provincias y un malapportionment legislativo record contribuyen a una bifurcación entre 1) unas pocas provincias productivas y democráticas, demográficamente dominantes pero políticamente débiles (como Buenos Aires, Mendoza y Santa Fe) y 2) un mayor número de provincias rentísticas y poco democráticas, demográficamente pequeñas pero políticamente poderosas (como Formosa, Santa Cruz y Santiago del Estero). Esta configuración explica varias “sorpresas” de estas cuatro décadas, como el sometimiento de la provincia de Buenos Aires, la preponderancia de los políticos de las provincias “periféricas” por sobre los de las “centrales” y, en parte, la paradójica combinación de una democracia robusta con un pobrísimo desempeño macroeconómico y un fuerte aumento de la pobreza y la desigualdad.