Abstract:
The paper presents the main results produced by the People's Security Surveys applied in Argentina, Brazil and Chile in 2001. A comparative analysis across countries is developed, trying to point out the similarities and contrasts among behavioral patterns according to the notions of socio-economic security. A common trace for the three countries is a clear partition on the labor market and employment notions of security: those that were either unemployed or inactive at the moment the surveys were conducted had a propensity for higher turnover and discouragement; those that held a job tended to experience lower job rotation and shorter spells of unemployment. On the other hand, the comparison also reveals some differences regarding labor market sense of insecurity. There is a tendency for more criticism in Argentina, both in objective grounds and, in a stronger fashion, for the aspects related to the individuals' perception. Brazilians stand in the other extreme, whereas Chileans are somewhere in the middle.