ABSTRACT
Changes wrought in Central American economies over the last 30 years have transformed production, work and relations with the international economy. Always deeply integrated with international markets through their dependence on exports, this period has seen market logic applied more intensively to the furthest reaches of the Central American territory and individual life. Karl Polanyi described the introduction of a self-regulating market as a Great Transformation, which had dire effects on crucial areas of life that were not originally created as commodities, especially land, labour and money (Polanyi 1957). The evidence gleaned from Central America over the past three decades suggests that the application of market logic has created opportunities for dynamism, but dynamic sectors have had ambiguous impacts on social and political life, and the recent evolution of capital offer questionable potential for long-term development.
