The problem of scientific policies in Central America (1980–2020): the tension between innovation and social cohesion in a global context

Science, Technology, and Innovation policies in the integration process of Central America and the Dominican Republic: the role of representations and perceptions

“…The extended scheme of CONCYTs has a critical defect: a low political hierarchy. A more detailed review of the institutional evolution of the countries of the Central American isthmus can be found in the work of Viales-Hurtado et al (2021) and for the Dominican Republic in the work of Gómez-Valenzuela (2020).…”

“…It allows the analysis to acquire a heuristic value by itself; therefore, the theoretical interest shifts relationally to the most available sources of the field studied, in this case, STI policies. The second implication is more practical and consists in expanding the specific body of knowledge at the regional level on STI policies, adding a theoretical and methodological complementary to the most recent literature on STI policy analyses at the level of Central America and the Dominican Republic (Bonilla & Serafim, 2021;Casale & Buenrostro, 2014;Gómez-Valenzuela, 2020;Gómez-Valenzuela et al, 2020;Padilla-Pérez & Gaudin, 2014;Viales-Hurtado et al, 2021). Thus, this paper highlights one key aspect of STI policy analysis at the Central American level about the role of representations of STI policies in the economic integration process, considering the perspective of selected policymakers and related stakeholders.…”

“…The 'labor-intensive activities' such as tourist services and various types of free zone parks, mainly of textiles in the Central America and Caribbean area, and activities based on natural resources exploitation such as mining and metallurgy, together with a relatively strong industrial sector in the Southern Cone (Cimoli et al, 2005). At the end of the nineties of the twenty century, Alcorta and Peres (1998, p. 877) found evidence of the differentiation production patterns and their effects in terms of technological specialization and innovations performance between Central America and the Caribbean and southern cone countries, reaching the latter a relative higher innovation performance (Bonilla & Serafim, 2021;Viales-Hurtado et al, 2021).…”

“…These representations obtained from the analysis of the interviews reflect, in principle, a level of conceptualization that contains the essential elements that define the activities on which an innovation system is centered. At the same time, these representations indicate the explicit recognition at the regional level of the importance of STI policies in creating opportunities for economic growth and social development but from an aspirational and long-term perspective (Casale & Buenrostro, 2014;Padilla-Pérez & Gaudin, 2014;Viales-Hurtado et al, 2021). However, it can become in kind of policy gap, which can operate as a political and cultural barrier that prevents STI policies from being effectively incorporated into decision-making dynamics in the face of short-and medium-term economic challenges, such as those generated by the COVID-19 pandemic at regional and national levels.…”

Los componentes de la evaluación en ciencia, tecnología e innovación: explorando la dimensión declarativa de las políticas CTI para el caso de América Central (1980-2020)

“…De lo anterior, se llama la atención hacia matizar las lecturas basadas en prejuicios generalizantes, ya que la evidencia arroja una preocupación, aunque mínima para algunos casos, por establecer criterios de evaluación científica válidos y amparados en estándares de organismos internacionales desde la formulación de los textos de acción política. Tal vez la única excepción a lo anterior la constituye Honduras, país que ha tenido especiales dificultades para consolidar su institucionalidad en materia CTI, y por tanto, para la publicación periódica de planes nacionales en la materia (Viales- Hurtado et al, 2021). Para los efectos aquí propuestos, lo anterior se traduce en una propuesta bastante limitada en términos de evaluación científica.…”