The absent presence of the State

institutional vulnerability and reproduction of inequalities in policy implementation

Abstract

This article proposes a theoretical-analytical reflection on the relationship between institutional vulnerability and the reproduction of inequalities in public policy implementation, with a focus on individuals’ subjective perceptions of state presence. It argues that inequality manifests not only as a socioeconomic condition, but also in the way the State organizes its presence and how this presence is perceived and interpreted by those who interact daily with its institutions. It contends that, in contexts of multiple deprivations, the State’s fragility in sustaining its protective function in a continuous and equitable manner, here termed institutional vulnerability, acts as an analytical mechanism that connects structural inequalities to recurring patterns of institutional inequality. As an outcome of this dynamic, the phenomenon of the “absent presence of the State” emerges: a configuration in which formally universal policies materialize in unstable, selective, and burdensome ways, shaping perceptions of unprotection, uncertainty, and precarious recognition, often associated with the coexistence of insufficient protection in some domains and selective intensity in others. Based on a critical review and integration of the literature on policy implementation, street-level bureaucracy, and administrative burdens, the article proposes an analytical model that articulates social structure, institutional practices, and the formation of subjective perceptions of public authority. By shifting the focus of analysis from organizational performance to the institutional and symbolic effects of implementation, the study expands the debate on inequality and public policy, demonstrating how state action may simultaneously promise universality while producing fragile bonds between individuals and the State.