How Citizens Perceive Access to Social Benefits in Mexico

• In Event: Experimental Work on Citizen Engagement & Participation in the Developing World

Abstract

Latin American countries have seen a dramatic expansion of social policy in recent years. Given the longstanding tradition of clientelism in benefits reaching the poor in the region, a surprising aspect of this expansion is that new social benefits have been largely non-discretionary. This is the case in Mexico, where large-scale programmatic (non-discretionary) benefits have been established while some smaller social programs remain discretionary. Although we have learned much about the politics of expansion and design we know much less about citizens’ views of social programs and of the conditions surrounding access to benefits. We rely on an original survey conducted in two states in Mexico—Mexico City and Chiapas—to explore how citizens, both beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries, experience and/or perceive access to social programs. Employing a list experiment embedded in the survey and seeking to understand citizens’ views of the politics of discretionary benefits, we investigate whether political parties or social organizations are seen as playing a role in facilitating access. Among other questions we ask: Are citizens active in organizations or parties more likely to perceive their relevance in intermediating access? Are perceptions about organizational and party intermediation of benefits associated with lower levels of citizen civic engagement? Are views about access systematically associated to receiving non-discretionary benefits?

Authors

• Brian Palmer-Rubin, Marquette University

• Candelaria Garay, Harvard University

• Mathias Poertner, Texas A&M University