Studies of the State in Argentina. Layers of Policy, Politics and Experiences of Citizenship

PERELMITER, LUISINA

Gouvernement et action publique

Presses de Sciences Po

Lugar: Paris; Año: 2019

2260-0965

The beginning of the 21st century was prolific for Latin America in terms of public policy. Most governments in the region undertook significant reforms, increasing the role of the state in diverse aspects of social life and, particularly, strengthening their welfare policies. However, political leaders worked within inherited organizational, technical and political resources and reforms were unevenly experienced by different social groups. In this way, these processes became a good laboratory for the social sciences and there has been a renewed interest in the regional study of the state and its policies, diversifying the conceptual and methodological tools to tackle it and actively engaging international debates on the subject.This article is a cross reading of two books that are both allocated at this historical juncture and good illustrations of this renewed interest in analysis of the state in the region. In El Estado en acción, the analyses are undertaken from a political science perspective and engage the well-developed discussion about how important institutions are in explaining political processes. Moreover, most of the articles illustrate a peculiar mix between academic frameworks and ?expert? language, which in turn expresses a characteristic porosity between academia and state public policies in Latin America. In Pacientes del Estado, Javier Auyero draws from sociological and ethnographic perspectives to demonstrate the importance of micro- and everyday state practices in understanding the relations between the state and its citizens. The book is a fine example of how ethnography can deliver grounded insights on the contemporary mutations of the state, that are both empirically rich and theoretically compelling, providing much needed nuances to a field dominated by top-down perspectives.