RIVISTA INTERNAZIONALE DI SCIENZE SOCIALI

This article proposes a common good approach to development. In the first part, we formalize what we understand by such an approach and propose a matrix of common good dynamics. The second part develops a metric to capture at the level of municipalities the present dynamic of the nexus of common goods. The third part revises how we can appraise and understand the data we get from the metric. The last part is dedicated to the value that the added information from the given approach may provide to development practitionners.

Based upon the theoretical framework proposed by Nebel and Arbesu-Verduzco (in this issue) about common good and its indicators, we summarily expound an instrument designed for measuring common good and social dynamics that was applied in the municipality of Atlixco, Puebla, and then we discuss a couple of models – Model 1 and Model 2 – arranged after it. We report that Model 1, the result of said application, presents some issues in spite of having good values of reliability. Hence, in an effort to enhance the initial instrument we show that Model 2, an adaptation of Model 1, presents a good fit plus good internal consistency. These results, then, serve an auxiliary purpose toward the validation of the instrument for future applications.

In recent years, the international development agenda gave centre stage to the need of measuring the multidimensionality of progress and quality of life. This trend led to the creation of a variety of metrics. The present article discusses a new metric which adopts a common good approach to development. It has the purpose of moving beyond individual measures and capture collective aspects of development. The metric of common good proposed by the Institute for the Promotion of the Common Good (IPBC) aims at empirically capturing social processes framed by (or generated by) five normative dimensions (Justice, Stability, Governance, Collective Agency Freedom, and Humanity), which together account for the quality of a nexus of common goods. This article explains the metric and its indicators, and critically discusses its contributions and future challenges.

In this paper, we assess the common good dynamics of the Mexican municipality of San Andre´s Cholula in the State of Puebla, using the common good matrix, developed by the Institute for the Promotion of the Common Good (IPBC). The metric captures the collective life and the social dynamics of a population at the municipal level, and sheds light on the formal and informal institutional framework that constitutes people’s lives. Through the application of 600 surveys in this municipality, we assess collective life of the locality on five dimensions. We show that justice and governance pose the greatest challenges to the municipality and we note, second, important disparities in the structure of social life between different localities within the municipality.

Studying common good dynamics at the municipal level in Mexico provides a direct understanding of the social, economic and political life in Mexico. Using the common good metric developed by the Institute for the Promotion of the Common Good (IPBC) for this purpose, we apply 450 surveys to evaluate the common good dynamics in the municipality of Atlixco, Puebla. With the use of a stratified sample, we show that social dynamics in the municipality are fragile in five dimensions (collective agency freedom, governance, justice, stability, and humanity), meaning that social order is fragile as well. We also show that collective life outside the municipal seat presents more healthy levels of social dynamics despite their lower performance in other indicators of development.