Abstract

This paper presents the phenomenon referred to as Productive Vocation (PV), which is a methodological proposal of this study to measure and promote the economic development of territories. PV is defined as the existence of high productive sensitivity (elasticity) in response to a group of structural similarities (labor, productive capacity, functionality, specialization, entrepreneurship, among others) and interaction with other territories. The study focuses on the nodal centers of the Chilean macrozones Norte Chico and Patagonia from 2008 to 2018 as reference territories. It was observed that the presence of this PV allows centers to act as true engines of development, with similarity and interaction fostering productive relationships. However, given the differences between the two macrozones, policies must be tailored to each territory, taking into account the variables that sensitize productive exchange. Finally, it was observed how smaller centers (or intermediate cities) pressure and complement the larger ones to increase their sensitivities.