Sistemas de status e controle social no interior do movimento de luta por moradia de Belo Horizonte-MG (1985 – 1995) : análise a partir de uma perspectiva neoestrutural

Abstract

This thesis has two main objectives: on the one hand, it aims at understanding the functioning conditions of a social movement - the Housing Movement of Belo Horizonte-MG between 1985 and 1995 - based on the investigation of two analytical axes, that of "power" and that of " social cohesion”; and on the other hand, it aims to understand how the processes of lateral social control take place within this movement and how the dynamics of power and social cohesion affect these processes. The investigation of the dynamics of power and cohesion, as well as their impacts on the mechanisms of social control, is carried out here from the Neo-Structural perspective. By following this perspective it is claimed the importance of examining the social interaction structures (social structures) of a movement to understand their functioning conditions and their success as a phenomenon of collective action. At the same time, when this perspective is followed, the autonomies and interdependencies that these "social structures" have with the "cultural" dimension and the dimension of "human agency" are recognized. With this in view, we sought to explain the functioning conditions - dynamics of power and social cohesion - of the Housing Movement of Belo Horizonte-MG (1985-1995) by modeling its most basic interactive processes. These interactive processes encompass four dimensions or relational domains of the movement: the domain of recognition/status relations; the domain of trust relations; the domain of collaborative relationships; and the domain of lateral social control relations. In order to operationalize the exchanges that make up these relational domains, the technique of Social Network Analysis (SNA) was used. The application of semi-structured interviews and sociometric questionnaires to 17 leaders of the movement made possible the reconstruction of four social networks, one for each of the aforementioned domains. Based on the reports of the leaders and using specific SNA metrics, it was found that the networks of movement had a considerable degree of "closure" and that the dynamics of cohesion of the movement - at least in the domain of lateral control relations - were located at the intersection of two distinct trends: on the one hand, there was a cohesion dynamic based on the formation of "factions" around the agglutinative organizations; and, on the other, a "center / periphery" cohesion dynamic. In terms of power dynamics, the data show that a leadership elite occupied the most central positions in all network domains investigated. The members of this elite were also the biggest brokers of the movement, being responsible for connecting the various wings and factions. This advantageous position in power hierarchies, in turn, was fundamental for the validity of lateral social control mechanisms, since the leaders with more "power" were also the ones in charge of "guarding collective action". In addition to the differences in power hierarchies, another factor that supported the mechanisms of lateral social control was homophilia in terms of belonging to agglutinating organizations: leaders' reports and other data collected about the movement suggest that this importance of homophilia may be linked to the fact that leaders of the same organization tended to be more cohesive in various domains of interaction. This multiplex cohesion among the actors of the same organization helped, in a variety of ways, to lower the costs (and increase the chances of success) of the exercise of control, thus functioning - along with hierarchies of power - as a solution for the "second-order free-rider problem".