The concept of University Social Responsibility and its implications in the university social commitment: approaches from the critical extension

Abstract

This article proposes to analyze the concept of university social responsibility and its implications for university social commitment in a context of globalization of the economy in Latin America, from the perspective of critical Latin American and Caribbean extension. The panorama left by globalization in higher education policy in Latin America is briefly evidenced, at the time of structural adjustments in the economies of developing countries in the face of pressures in the world, to generalize strategies of free market of capitals and products. In this framework, the concept of university social responsibility arises, which overlaps the agendas of the universities and misrepresents the social mission of the university, while it is imposed as a third mission approach. From the perspective of critical extension, it is evident that this concept is not supported by the reformist tradition of the Latin American university, but, in addition, it breaks into the work of university extension and serves as an umbrella to introduce other functions that do not correspond to the functions of teaching, research and extension, typical of Latin American universities.