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Rural Vulnerabilities in Southern Spain: Beyond Material Deprivation

Author

Listed:
  • Auxiliadora González‐Portillo
  • Esteban Ruiz‐Ballesteros

Abstract

Research on vulnerability has mainly focused on urban contexts, which has shaped and conditioned the research that has been developed in rural contexts. In this sense, research in rural contexts is not only scarce but also limited in several respects: (1) in the concept of vulnerability (almost exclusively limited to material deprivation and poverty or environmental disasters and climate change); (2) in the methodological approach (almost exclusive use of quantitative data based on national or regional macro‐statistics) and (3) in the cases in which the research has been conducted (mainly developing countries, with the Global North almost completely absent). In this article, we delve deeper into the identification and understanding of rural vulnerability. We developed a qualitative‐ethnographic research, at a double scale (county and local) in Andalusia (Spain). This approach to rural vulnerability has allowed us (1) to characterize it from a broad and multidimensional perspective and (2) to appreciate the importance of the qualitative methodological approach at the local/micro level as a way of accessing realities that are not reflected in national/macro statistics. Both of these aspects are essential to sustain the rural proofing strategies implemented by public policy. 脆弱性研究主要聚焦于城市情境, 这影响并制约了农村情境下开展的研究。因此, 农村情境下的研究不仅匮乏, 而且在以下几个方面受到限制:(1)脆弱性的概念 (几乎仅限于物质匮乏和贫困或环境灾害和气候变化) ；(2)方法论 (几乎完全使用基于国家或区域宏观统计学的定量数据) ；(3)研究的案例 (主要为发展中国家, 几乎完全没有来自北方国家的研究) 。本文中, 我们将深入探讨农村脆弱性的识别和理解。我们在西班牙安达卢西亚地区开展了一项双重尺度 (县和地方) 的定性民族志研究。这种研究农村脆弱性的方法使我们能够:(1)从广泛而多维的视角来描述农村脆弱性；(2)认识到在地方/微观层面采用定性方法的重要性, 因为它能够评估国家/宏观统计数据中未反映的现实情况。这两方面对于维持公共政策实施的乡村验核战略至关重要。 La investigación sobre vulnerabilidad se ha centrado principalmente en contextos urbanos, lo que ha moldeado y condicionado la investigación desarrollada en contextos rurales. En este sentido, la investigación en contextos rurales no solo es escasa, sino también limitada en varios aspectos: (1) en el concepto de vulnerabilidad (limitada casi exclusivamente a privaciones materiales y pobreza o desastres ambientales y cambio climático); (2) en el enfoque metodológico (uso casi exclusivo de datos cuantitativos basados en macroestadísticas nacionales o regionales); y (3) en los casos en que se ha realizado la investigación (principalmente países en desarrollo, con el Norte Global prácticamente ausente). En este artículo, profundizamos en la identificación y comprensión de la vulnerabilidad rural. Desarrollamos una investigación cualitativa‐etnográfica, a doble escala (comarcal y local) en Andalucía (España). Este enfoque de la vulnerabilidad rural nos ha permitido: (1) caracterizarla desde una perspectiva amplia y multidimensional, y (2) apreciar la importancia del enfoque metodológico cualitativo a nivel local/micro para acceder a realidades que no se reflejan en las macroestadísticas nacionales. Ambos aspectos son esenciales para sustentar las estrategias de fortalecimiento rural implementadas por las políticas públicas.

Suggested Citation

  • Auxiliadora González‐Portillo & Esteban Ruiz‐Ballesteros, 2025. "Rural Vulnerabilities in Southern Spain: Beyond Material Deprivation," Poverty & Public Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 17(2), June.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:povpop:v:17:y:2025:i:2:n:e70010
    DOI: 10.1002/pop4.70010
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    References listed on IDEAS

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