The Institutionalization of the Social Sciences in Mexico 1930–1959

The first decade of this time period was characterized by the central importance of Lazaro Cardenas’s presidency (1934–1940), including his reforms that sought to promote equality in land ownership in the countryside and his support for the immigration of Spanish republicans, which would have an important intellectual influence in the development of social sciences and humanities in Mexico. The second decade, during the presidential periods of Avila Camacho (1940–1946) and Miguel Aleman (1946–1952) saw economic policies that promoted the industrialization and urbanization of the country, which was often described as the “Mexican Miracle.” Sociology went through an institutionalization process with the founding of research institutions, editorial houses, specialized journals, and bachelor’s programs.