Rising from the Ashes: The De-Technocratization of Government Economists and the (Re)Emergence of a Heterodox Economic Network in Argentina (2002-2022)

Abstract

Economics has long been considered a hierarchically structured and technocratic profession, especially in Latin America, where U.S.-trained, finance-oriented economists reshaped national policy fields through pro-market reforms in the late 20th century. Yet, Argentina’s trajectory after the 2001 crisis diverges sharply from this pattern. This paper analyzes the changing composition of Argentina’s economic policymaking elite between 2002 and 2022 using multiple correspondence analysis within a field-theoretical framework. I argue that three distinct phases characterize this transformation. First, a process of de-technocratization occurred, as political and bureaucratic experience outweighed academic credentials in recruitment decisions. Second, a partial re-academization followed, marked by the return of economists with postgraduate training, though often with limited policymaking experience. Third, ideological polarization intensified, as orthodox and heterodox economists alternated in government under rival political coalitions. Unlike most Western democracies, where heterodox economic perspectives are marginalized, Argentina’s policymaking field remains a contested space characterized by disciplinary diversity.