Latin American Neoliberalism: Autonomous, Guided, and Horizontal Diffusion, 1930–1980

This article reexamines the emergence and diffusion of neoliberalism in Latin America through a transnational history lens. It focuses on the first generation of Latin American neoliberals from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru, and Venezuela, tracing their early engagements with neoliberal thought. While acknowledging the influence of Northern actors—such as the Mont Pelerin Society, the Foundation for Economic Education, and prominent Western economists—the article argues that Latin American neoliberalism emerged through a complex, multiscalar process that intertwined global, regional, and national dynamics. To capture this complexity, the study identifies three distinct yet interrelated models of neoliberalization, organized around timing, intensity, and form of actors’ engagement with transnational networks: autonomous emergence, in which local actors developed market-oriented ideas before establishing dense institutional ties with global networks, drawing on local liberal traditions and producing eclectic articulations; guided diffusion, in which early and sustained mentorship by Western think tanks, universities, or intellectuals provided local actors with more coherent doctrinal frameworks; and horizontal exchanges through which Latin American actors collaborated directly with one another, transferring know-how and forging regional solidarities more effectively than producing lasting intellectual convergence. By disentangling these models, the article advances a more dynamic and nuanced narrative than the traditional North–South diffusion paradigm.