New Books in Sociology

Diana Graizbord, "Indicators of Democracy: The Politics and Promise of Evaluation Expertise in Mexico" (Stanford UP, 2024)

May 2, 2025

Diana Graizbord, Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Georgia, discusses her new book on the interplay of democracy and evaluation expertise in Mexico. She delves into how institutions like Coneval aim to ensure accountability but often grapple with complex political realities. The conversation touches on the emergence of 'techno-democracy' and the significance of citizen involvement in shaping policies. Graizbord also examines how political transitions influence the effectiveness of evaluation processes and the broader implications for democracy in the Global South.

52:44

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Diana Graizbord

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Quick takeaways

Diana Graizbord explores the intersection of evaluation expertise and democratic accountability in Mexico's political landscape through the lens of technodemocracy.

The evolution of monitoring and evaluation practices reflects a broader struggle between traditional accountability measures and emerging democratic visions under AMLO's leadership.

Deep dives

The Evolution of Monitoring and Evaluation in Mexico

Monitoring and evaluation (M&E) in Mexico have undergone significant transformations reflecting the nation's quest for greater democracy. The establishment of the National Council for Evaluation of Social Development Policy (Coneval) was a key outcome of the successful conditional cash transfer program, Progresa Oportunidades. This program gained international acclaim and served as a model for subsequent initiatives due to its rigorous evaluation methods, which attracted the attention of global economists and policymakers. As a result, M&E became inscribed into the fabric of social policy, representing a commitment to transparency and accountability in governance.

Intro

3min

Navigating Ethnography in Mexican Development

5min

Ethnographic Access and Evaluation in Mexico

7min

Navigating the Interplay of Monitoring, Evaluation, and Political Ideologies

3min

Exploring Techno-Democracy: The Intersection of Expertise and Public Policy

2min

Hinge of Evaluation: Bridging Stakeholders in Mexico's Coneval Framework

24min

Transformations in Mexico's Political Landscape

6min

The spread of democracy across the Global South has taken many different forms, but certain features are consistent: implementing a system of elections and an overarching mission of serving the will and well-being of a country's citizens. But how do we hold politicians accountable for such a mission? How are we to understand the efficacy of the policies they put forth?

In Indicators of Democracy (Stanford UP, 2024), Diana Graizbord exposes the complex, often-hidden world of the institutions that are meant to ensure democratic accountability and transparency. Taking the case of Mexico's National Council for the Evaluation of Social Development Policy (CONEVAL), Graizbord provides a deep theory of what happens when democratic aspirations intersect with technocratic ambitions. Analyzing what it takes to establish and sustain monitoring and evaluation as a form of official state expertise, Graizbord is able to put forward the contours of technodemocracy—a democratic political project that hinges on the power of experts to shape politics in unexpected but profound ways.

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