International Sociology and International Sociology Reviews

This month enjoy free access to the article by Santiago Poy (CONICET, University of Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, and Interdisciplinary Institute of Political Economy, Argentina) and Eugenia Dichiera (Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina, and National Agency for the Promotion of Research, Technological Development, and Innovation, Argentine Social Debt’s Observatory, Argentina) Micro and macro drivers of working poverty in four Latin-American countries: A comparative study published in International Sociology, which was shorlisted for the Annual SAGE International Sociology Best Paper Prize’s 2025 edition (Vol. 40). Read on to know more about the authors’ trajectory and work.

Santiago Poy

Eugenia Dichiera

Why are you working on this topic? Could you share an experience, a fact or a person who made you get engaged in that research?

S. Poy & E. Dichiera: Our engagement with in-work poverty is rooted in a broader concern with the persistence of social inequality in Latin America. The region has experienced periods of economic growth, poverty reduction and labour market expansion, yet deep structural inequalities continue to shape life chances. One of the most striking features of this reality is that employment does not necessarily guarantee a decent standard of living. The fact that many individuals who work full time remain poor reveals a fundamental tension between economic participation and social inclusion—a tension that is deepening in an increasingly complex context of accelerated technological change. We are particularly interested in understanding how segmented labour markets, informal employment and unequal access to social protection reproduce poverty even among working households, and what this implies for more inclusive development strategies.

What would you emphasize about your academic trajectory? Can you highlight your academic positions, universities, awards, departments and research centres?

S. Poy: I am a sociologist and hold a PhD from the University of Buenos Aires. I am currently a tenured researcher at the National Council for Scientific and Technical Research (CONICET) in Argentina, based at the Centro de Estudios sobre Población, Empleo y Desarrollo, Faculty of Economics, University of Buenos Aires. I have previously been a researcher at other universities in the country and have collaborated on projects for national and international organisations in the fields of social policy, poverty and labour markets.

E. Dichiera: I am a sociologist and lecturer at the University of Buenos Aires. I have been a fellow of the National Agency for the Promotion of Research and Innovation. I am currently pursuing my PhD in Social Sciences at the University of Buenos Aires, where I study the relationship between in-work poverty and gender.