Crisis in the Periphery: The Concept of “Crisis” in Latin American Developmentalism and Raúl Prebisch, 1929-1980s

Abstract

This article offers a study of the uses of the concept of crisis in Latin America in the context of Dependency Theory and Developmentalism. This conceptual history of “crisis” in twentieth-century Latin America identifies the intellectual trajectory of Argentine economist Raul Prebisch as a starting point and narrative thread, followed by the iconic sociological products of, or influenced by, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC/CEPAL). The trajectory of the concept of crisis in the region begins with a concrete temporal application referring to specific historical critical moments or junctures. Based on Prebisch’s work, it shows how a fundamental conceptual shift may be observed during the crisis of the 1930s, when crisis is conceptualized as an opportunity that leaves “the lesson” of an urgent need to revise neoclassical economic theory, promote industrialization, and to deeply restructure the role of the State in the region. Later, in the late 1950s and in the context of CEPAL and Development Sociology, the concept changed from a conjunctural to a structural meaning. The article tackles other temporal applications, such as cyclical crisis, structural crisis, and permanent crisis.