The welfare state from the perspective of political and community actors in the Biobío region

Abstract

This article examines the emergent concept of the caring state in Chile, at the intersection of feminist debates on care, regional agendas for a “care society,” and constitutional and policy discussions around the National Care System. The objective is to define the caring state by integrating the perspectives of political–institutional actors and community caregivers in the Biobío region. The study adopts a qualitative, exploratory, and descriptive design, combining documentary analysis, semi-structured interviews with regional and municipal actors, and a focus group with caregivers, primarily women. Using an operational matrix of five dimensions (legal, equity, public policy, ethical, and institutional), qualitative content analysis is applied to identify convergences, tensions, and contributions among actors.

Findings reveal a broad consensus on the centrality of care for sustaining life and social cohesion, alongside significant divergences: institutional actors frame care as a collective need and a public good, whereas caregivers describe it as an act of love marked by sacrifice, precariousness, time scarcity, and unwanted loneliness. There is shared agreement that the current role of the State is insufficient and fragmented, constrained by the subsidiary model, and a strong demand for recognizing care as a right, as work, and as an ethical principle. The article proposes a situated definition of the caring state as a social state that redistributes care through shared responsibility, develops multilevel and territorially grounded care systems, and strengthens democratic institutions and citizen capacities to place care at the center of public administration.