Sistema Regional de Información
en línea para Revistas Científicas de América Latina,
el Caribe, España y Portugal

Evidence has demonstrated that therapeutic alliances and the repair of alliance ruptures are related to positive psychotherapeutic results. However, this has been less frequently studied in other helping relationships, in family interventions, and in mandatory interventions. This article aims to analyze the tensions within the therapeutic alliance between caregivers** and social workers from the Chilean child protection system. Ours is a longitudinal study that followed six social worker–caregiver dyads for ten months. Techniques such as observation, in-depth interviews, and session-by-session interviews were carried out, followed by content analysis. The main results are the following: the therapeutic alliance is subject to tensions when there is a questioning of the parental abilities; asymmetry of power and the threat that the children may be taken from the house affect the caregiver’s trust in the social worker; and managing and understanding the tensions make it possible to strengthen the relationship. Strategies for managing tensions include reinforcing the clinical space as a safe space and developing a collaborative dynamic. This article discusses how tensions are associated with the family, social worker, methodology, and child protection system. Future lines of research are proposed to develop more tools to observe, analyze, and strengthen the therapeutic alliance.

The performance of critical thinking skills depends on motivational factors. Based on the expectancy-value motivational theory, this paper analyzes the effect of motivational components (expectancy, utility, attainment, cost, and interest) on the performance of critical thinking skills, and estimates the predictive capacity of these factors on critical thinking skills. In this study, three instruments were applied to a sample of 254 Spanish university students: the Motivation for Critical Thinking Scale (EMPC) and two scales of critical thinking skills: PENCRISAL and CCTST. Multiple regression analysis was used to identify the motivational components that best explain the performance of these skills. The results show that, regardless of the critical thinking test used, the motivational variables explain the variance in the performance of critical thinking skills ranging from 8% to 17%. Finally, the importance of considering these components of motivation to promote performance in these critical thinking skills is discussed.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming various aspects of our lives, and the field of education is no exception. The potential of AI to revolutionize education is immense, offering opportunities for personalized and efficient learning experiences. However, it is crucial to acknowledge the potential risks associated with AI in education, such as bias and job displacement. In this editorial, we will explore both the benefits and risks of AI in education, highlighting the need for careful consideration and responsible implementation

Objective: To analyze the sexual division of labor and the distribution of benefits around milk and cheese production in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, Oaxaca. Methodology: Interviews with 14 women and 17 men, two workshops, participant observation, and 90 questionnaires applied to male and female landowners. Results: Most landowners (67.7%) sell unprocessed milk to cheesemakers in the region. Female landowners are either widows or single; as such, they have less access to resources and lower production levels. A smaller percentage (18.8%) of families transform milk into cheese, with women playing a crucial role and having a larger access to benefits. Limitations: Landowners were selected from the Ministry of Agriculture program lists, thus excluding cattle owners who are not beneficiaries. Conclusions: First, the marital status of women (widowhood or single) increases their vulnerability in the milk market traditionally dominated by men. Second, the transformation of milk into cheese is decreasing in the region, and with it, women’s participation in processing tasks and access to ranch benefits.

Objective: To present an overview of the dairy industry in Mexico to assess its important as sector in the national economy as well as to emphasize new consumer trends. Methodology: Consisted of documentary research focused on issues related to consumer behavior in Mexico and the relevance of the dairy sector in the country and in the world. Results: The production systems are described and a brief review of the importance of milk for food and health is included. Limitations: Limitations of the article lie in the difficulty of including other factors involved that would allow a broader characterization of the Mexican dairy industry and the factors that drive it or are an obstacle to its expansion, which is beyond the scope of this document. Conclusion: The changes exhibited by the dairy industry respond to the tendency to substitute its consumption with “non-milk” or plant-based food products and to the dynamics of competition between oligopolistic firms.

Objective: To decipher the actions, practices and political procedures aimed at the consummation of democracy in the continent, suggested by the elaborators of the RRDH-AL (Regional Reports on Human Development: Latin America), in the last years of the 20th century and the following 15 years of the 21st century, in the light of the work of the Guatemalan sociologist Edelberto Torres-Rivas. Methodology: This is a documental research based on a historical-hermeneutic perspective that seeks to unveil the meaning of the prescriptive propositions contained in the HRHRAL and the social and political context that engendered them. Results: It can be seen that these reports show the commitment of their creators to see some democratizing advances with regard to political representation and participation, as well as to identify whether or not there are possibilities of bringing about lasting processes of deconcentration of power, of broadening access to fundamental and human rights, of commitment to fighting poverty, inequality, and the various faces of violence that have acted as obstacles to the realization of democracy. Limitations: One can point out the challenge of scrutinizing all the diagnoses and prescriptions contained in the RRDH-AL. They are extensive documents that can be interpreted from different epistemological, theoretical, and procedural angles. Conclusions: That the diagnoses and prescriptions of the RRDH-AL are fragile when they are put in the light of the writings of Edelberto Torres-Rivas who, during the period portrayed in the reports, was engaged in the analysis of the attempts both to construct and to obstruct the procedures of power distribution. It is assumed that Torres-Rivas' analyses elucidate the defining processes of political life not only in Central America, but also in many ways in other parts of the Latin American continent.

Objective: To analyze the sustainability of the dry and toasted tortillas called “totopos” production system (TPS) in a group of women in Tehuantepec, in the Oaxaca Isthmus region, Mexico. Methodology: Through a conventional sampling, 60 surveys were applied to capture sociodemographic information and characteristics of the TPS. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and the Natural Resources Management Systems Assessment Framework Incorporating Sustainability Indicators (MESMIS). Results: Most of the women are young, the activity is artisan using "comixcal", the economic income serves for the family sustenance. The profitability of the TPS, is maintained at the expense of health risks due to long working hours, the use of high firewood amounts, and chronic smoke exposure. 66.7% showed at least one symptom of smoke poisoning. Limitations: The results are derived from the sample obtained. For the sustainability evaluation, other indicators were probably not considered. Conclusions: “Totopos” elaboration is an important mechanism to generate economic income at the expense of the health of the women involved. Promoting strategies to improve the sustainability of the TPS is necessary by including the adoption of eco-technologies for more efficient use of firewood and training for self-management in the marketing of the product.

Objective: To identify changes in food and energy consumption of Sonoran school-age children during 2010-2018. Methods: This was an analytical cross-sectional study. Consumption patterns were determined using dietary databases (24-hour recall) and examining food consumption trends from 20102018. Results: Non-permanent changes were observed in the per capita consumption of cheese, meat, chicken, tortilla, and wheat products, as well as sugar drinks mainly cola type. In addition, eggs, beans, tortillas, and corn products and fried foods consumption increased (p≤0.01). Also, a decrease in milk and not recommended foods intake such as breakfast cereals, artificial fruit juices, breads, and cookies was found (p≤0.01). Limitations: Some foods could be underestimated or overestimated according to population characteristics; however, the personnel training minimizes the possibilities of error. Conclusions: Trends in consumption of recommended and non-recommended foods seems to suggest that national regulations regarding sugar-sweetened beverages and high energy foods among children, could be related to food consumption during 2012-014 period. Also, that energy consumption from both types of foods results high according to recommendations, alerting on portion size for future interventions.

Objective: To analyze the influence of international trade on the specialization and competitiveness of Mexican chicken meat during 1980 to 2017. Methodology: A hypothetical-deductive method was applied; the study is longitudinal with information from secondary sources with which it was developed. a database in Excel in the form of matrices to calculate the competitiveness indices at the macroeconomic level, which are: the Lafay and Balassa index. Results: The results show that Mexico lacks comparative advantages and must generate strategies for infrastructure, health regulation and strengthening of the productive chain to increase production, reduce costs and thereby increase its specialization and competitiveness as a net exporter. Limitations: Is necessary to disseminate, by the institutional route and in collaboration with private and non- governmental organizations, the best agricultural practices and at the same time, stimulate the development of the improved seed market. Conclusions: It is necessary to carry out actions that increase the advantages and with it the specialization and competitiveness in the commercial poultry farming of chicken meat.

Objective: To compare the state of household food security in Mexico in the socioeconomic context of the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the estimates of two household experience scales in 2020. Methodology: Cross-sectional study, based on data from the Encuesta Nacional de Salud y Nutrición 2020 sobre Covid-19 and the Encuesta Nacional de Ingresos y Gastos de los Hogares 2020. This was with ordinal regressions of partially proportional probabilities, the probabilities of presenting some degree of food insecurity adjusting for variables of the characteristics of the headship and the socioeconomic conditions of the household. Results: Both scales are consistent when determining the percentage of households that experienced severe food insecurity, but not mild or moderate food insecurity. Limitations: This work does not analyze the individual items of the scales, in addition to the fact that longitudinal changes were not explored. Conclusion: in general contexts such as the Covid-19 pandemic, the Latin American and Caribbean Food Security Scale and the Mexican Food Security Scale are instruments that allow households affected by severe food insecurity to be identified.