Modelos de desarrollo y su distorsión en el imaginario latinoamericano

Abstract

The concept of development has been extensively addressed in Latin American academic literature from multiple theoretical perspectives that understand it as a multidimensional process of economic, social, territorial, and human transformation. However, in everyday social practice, the term often acquires meanings that differ from those proposed by such approaches. In this context, this article aims to analyze the main development models and examine their distortion within the Latin American social imagination. The study adopted a qualitative–interpretative approach with a non-experimental design, combining a critical theoretical review with a socio-digital analysis of search behavior related to the terms “development” and “economic development.” The empirical component was based on the analysis of trends, territorial distribution, related topics, and associated searches using aggregated data from Google Trends in Ecuador, Latin America, and at a global level. The results show that development is predominantly understood as a concept linked to social programs, monetary transfers, and institutional procedures, while economic development is mainly associated with state administrative structures. These findings reveal a persistent gap between the theoretical conceptualization of development and its social appropriation, highlighting the need to rethink development strategies by considering not only theoretical models but also the social imaginaries that shape their understanding and application in the Latin American context.