Social representations of development among users and implementers of a housing project in rural Peru

Amid the current crisis of social projects, a key challenge lies in understanding how their actors conceive development. From a qualitative approach (interviews and workshops), this study explores the Social Representations of Development (SRD) among 19 users and 18 implementers of a thermal housing project in a rural Peruvian community. Thematic analysis revealed that while users prioritize education and production, implementers emphasize education, politics, and essential services. Despite these differences, both groups’ SRD align with the Human Development and Sustainable Livelihoods approaches. Users adopt a pragmatic view focused on subsistence and equality, resonating with post-development perspectives, whereas implementers hold a more structural and idealistic view highlighting environmental and cultural sustainability and elements of sumak kawsay. These findings pose theoretical, methodological, and sociopolitical challenges for project management. The study offers relevant insights for designing policies and programs that engage younger generations amid socio-environmental and economic crises in rural territories.