Implementación de la política social: Espacio de intermediación clientelar. Análisis de caso, La Plata, Argentina

Abstract

This article will address the issue of social policy implementation, through the study of four types of social programs in the village of Altos de San Lorenzo, city of La Plata, Argentina. The type of intermediation relationships of patronage (Auyero, 2004) established (or not) is investigated, according to the variation of implementation conditions and levels of interaction with beneficiaries. Among the key findings there are a clear intermediation practice that fluctuates between political patronage and patronage-programmatic intermediation, and the existence of different types of social capital mediated by different stakeholders, clearly identified depending on the characteristics of social programs analyzed. The methodology was qualitative: 29 semi-structured interviews were conducted with recipients and intermediaries of the eight tested social programs. The sample was structural, built by snowball. Also a social networks survey –that allowed the analysis of established linkages and generated social capital– was performed.