Estructura de oportunidades, activos de los hogares y movilización de activos en Montevideo (1991-1998).

The article examines the impact that resulted from the transformations occurred in the Uruguayan social structure during the 1990s on the household's portfolio of assets. More specifically, the author seeks to enhance our conceptual and methodological understanding of the nature of changes that are linked to transformations of particular type assets. At its core, the paper seeks to provide input for public policy design and contribute to the development of a new theoretical approach based on previous formulations of the asset-vulnerability framework. As characterized in this paper, there are three substantial transformations affecting the household's assets portfolio, influenced by changes in the employment, family and residential structures. First, recent disruptions in the job market such as increasing process of precarization, labor flexibilization, changes in labor legislation, high unemployment rates, insufficient creation of job opportunities and rise of low paid positions, have weakened the structure of opportunities for vulnerable families. Second, changes in family structures and family organization resulting from an incomplete second demographic transition, have promoted increases in divorce rates, in the number single headed households, evident crisis of the institution of marriage, and children born out of wedlock. Finally, the paper examines the group of influences that derive from the progressive segmentation of social structures as a consequence of residential, educational and labor segregation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]