PapersFlow Research Brief
Latin American social science
Research Guide
What is Latin American social science?
Latin American social science is a body of scholarly work that examines social movements, cultural resistance, citizenship education, political activism, identity politics, community engagement, educational reform, gender studies, and youth empowerment in Latin American contexts amid globalization.
This field encompasses 1,259 works focused on the dynamics of social movements and cultural change in Latin America. Key themes include epistemic coloniality in organization studies and new social movements in Brazil and Argentina during the 1980s. Research also addresses teacher subjectivity under new regulations in Chile and political representation concepts from historical discourses.
Topic Hierarchy
Research Sub-Topics
Epistemic Coloniality in Latin America
Researchers examine how colonial knowledge structures persist in Latin American organization studies and social sciences, challenging Eurocentric epistemologies. They analyze decolonial approaches from marginalized perspectives to rethink social theory.
New Social Movements in Brazil and Argentina
Studies focus on the emergence and political impact of new social movements in 1980s Brazil and Argentina, linking them to democratization processes. Researchers explore their role in shaping political culture and civic participation.
Habermasian Communicative Action in Latin America
This area investigates Habermas's theory of communicative action applied to Latin American contexts of social rationalization and critique. Papers analyze its implications for ideology critique and pragmatic discourse in regional politics.
Teacher Subjectivity and Resistance in Chile
Research explores how new teacher regulations in Chile shape subjectivity, discourse, and forms of resistance in education. It examines neoliberal reforms' impact on educators' identities and agency.
Cultural Resistance and Hegemony in Latin America
Scholars study Gramscian hegemony and cultural resistance strategies in Latin American contexts, including anthropology and identity politics. They investigate how subaltern groups challenge dominant cultural narratives.
Why It Matters
Latin American social science analyzes transitions from authoritarian rule to democracy, as seen in Brazil and Argentina where new social movements shaped political culture in the 1980s (Mainwaring and Viola, 1984). It critiques epistemic coloniality in organization studies, highlighting marginal voices in the region (Ibarra-Colado, 2006). Studies reveal how new teacher regulations in Chile reconfigure professional subjectivity and foster resistance through discursive analysis of interviews (Fardella and Sisto, 2015). These works inform educational reform and community engagement amid globalization, with 1,259 papers documenting impacts on identity politics and youth empowerment.
Reading Guide
Where to Start
"Organization Studies and Epistemic Coloniality in Latin America: Thinking Otherness from the Margins" by Ibarra-Colado (2006) provides an accessible entry by outlining epistemic coloniality and the need for marginal perspectives in the region.
Key Papers Explained
Ibarra-Colado (2006) establishes epistemic coloniality in organization studies, which connects to Mainwaring and Viola (1984) analysis of new social movements in Brazil and Argentina that drove 1980s democratization. Fardella and Sisto (2015) extend this to educational resistance in Chile, showing regulatory impacts on subjectivity. Sarlo (1999) links cultural studies to literary criticism, building on identity politics themes, while Bohman (1986) and Hanevy (2008) apply Habermas's communicative action to critique ideology and rationality.
Paper Timeline
Most-cited paper highlighted in red. Papers ordered chronologically.
Advanced Directions
Current work builds on resistance and subjectivity in education, as in Fardella and Sisto (2015), and pandemic impacts in Brazil (Almeida et al., 2020). No recent preprints or news coverage indicate steady focus on foundational critiques like coloniality and movements.
Papers at a Glance
| # | Paper | Year | Venue | Citations | Open Access |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Organization Studies and Epistemic Coloniality in Latin Americ... | 2006 | Organization | 447 | ✕ |
| 2 | formal pragmatics and social criticism: the philosophy of lang... | 1986 | Philosophy & Social Cr... | 255 | ✕ |
| 3 | Marxismo e filosofia da linguagem : problemas fundamentais do ... | 1981 | Hucitec eBooks | 226 | ✕ |
| 4 | Fundamentos de la relación entre la racionalidad de la acción ... | 2008 | El Servicio de Difusió... | 129 | ✕ |
| 5 | New Social Movements, Political Culture, and Democracy: Brazil... | 1984 | Telos | 101 | ✕ |
| 6 | Cultural studies and literary criticism at the crossroads of v... | 1999 | Journal of Latin Ameri... | 77 | ✕ |
| 7 | Discurso aos eleitores de Bristol | 2012 | Revista de Sociologia ... | 73 | ✓ |
| 8 | Hegemony and Anthropology | 1996 | Critique of Anthropology | 69 | ✕ |
| 9 | NUEVAS REGULACIONES DEL TRABAJO DOCENTE EN CHILE. DISCURSO, SU... | 2015 | Psicologia & Sociedade | 63 | ✓ |
| 10 | A pandemia e seus impactos no Brasil | 2020 | Middle Atlantic Review... | 58 | ✓ |
Latest Developments
Recent developments in Latin American social science research include the upcoming LASA Congress in Paris from May 26 to 30, 2026, under the theme "Republic and Revolution," which will explore the region's historical and political transformations (lasaweb.org). Additionally, there is ongoing research on poverty and social hierarchies, with recent studies highlighting that approximately one-third of the population lives in poverty, and examining social stratification patterns across the region (economia.lse.ac.uk, frontiersin.org). The UNESCO Juan Bosch Prize for social science research in Latin America and the Caribbean for 2026 has also been announced to reward young researchers working on social development policies (unesco.org). Furthermore, the LASA 2026 Congress in Paris and other conferences continue to foster scholarly exchange on regional issues (ipsa.org).
Sources
Frequently Asked Questions
What is epistemic coloniality in Latin American organization studies?
Epistemic coloniality refers to the prevailing dominance of external knowledge frameworks in Latin American organization studies. Ibarra-Colado (2006) argues for recognizing geopolitical spaces as places of enunciation to think otherness from the margins. This approach sustains the relevance of regional perspectives in the field.
How did new social movements influence democracy in Brazil and Argentina?
New social movements contributed to democratic transitions after authoritarian periods in Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and Bolivia. Mainwaring and Viola (1984) document how these movements awakened political culture and supported democratization in the 1980s. The process involved shifts toward more democratic systems in South America.
What role does discourse play in Chilean teacher regulations?
New regulations in Chile introduce languages and categories that define teacher labor and shape subjectivity. Fardella and Sisto (2015) analyzed 20 teacher interviews to identify discursive matrices and resistance patterns. These regulations operate as ordering frameworks for professional identity.
How does cultural studies intersect with literary criticism in Latin America?
Cultural studies and literary criticism meet at the crossroads of values in Latin American scholarship. Sarlo (1999) explores this intersection within state-culture dynamics. The work appears in discussions of culture and the state in the region.
What are the main topics in Latin American social science?
Main topics include social movements, cultural resistance, citizenship education, globalization, political activism, identity politics, community engagement, educational reform, gender studies, and youth empowerment. The field comprises 1,259 works. These themes address dynamics in various global contexts with a Latin American focus.
Open Research Questions
- ? How can organization studies overcome epistemic coloniality by centering Latin American geopolitical spaces as enunciation sites?
- ? In what ways do new social movements reshape political culture during democratic transitions in Southern Cone countries?
- ? How do regulatory discourses construct teacher subjectivity and enable resistance in Chilean education?
- ? What tensions arise between cultural studies and literary criticism in evaluating state-influenced values?
- ? How does Habermas's theory of communicative action apply to rationality and social rationalization in Latin American contexts?
Recent Trends
The field holds 1,259 works with no specified 5-year growth rate.
Recent citations include pandemic impacts in Brazil (Almeida et al., 2020, 58 citations) and Chilean teacher regulations (Fardella and Sisto, 2015, 63 citations), extending themes of social critique and resistance.
No preprints or news from the last 12 months signal ongoing emphasis on established topics like epistemic coloniality (Ibarra-Colado, 2006, 447 citations).
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