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A Cultural Approach to Social Policies: The Role of Knowledge

Inter-American Institute for Social Development, Washington, DC

In this article I explore the idea that the enormous social inequality that has historically prevailed in 'peripheral' countries is a result of the economicist approach to development policies. This approach presumes a set of results and effects for the benefit of all that is obviously not achieved. In order to understand, attend to and/or overcome this situation, a rethinking of the development model is needed. I suggest that we need to pay careful attention to the key role that knowledge plays in supporting inequality because the conception, reconception, instrumentation/implementation and enrichment of knowledge are a continuous process. I would like to propose an inclusive model of development that requires an alternative approach (wide, democratic and cultural) to the development of public policies. The focus of this article is on this model and I will pay particular attention to its social policies and their cognitive basis. The inclusive model is a 'cultural approach' that aims to include a group of immaterial factors, such as social values, collective 'imaginarios', people's interests, creativity and capabilities.

Key Words: citizen participation • democracy • development • knowledge • social exclusion • social policies

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