Before entering fully into the definition of social gap, we are going to proceed to expose what is the etymological origin of the two words that give it shape:
-Brecha, on the one hand, is a term that comes from the French “brèche” and this in turn derives from the Germanic “breham”, which can be translated as “break”.
-Social, on the other hand, derives from the Latin word “socialis” which means “belonging to the community of people”. It is the result of the sum of two clearly delimited components: the noun “socius”, which is synonymous with “partner”, and the suffix “-al”, which is used to indicate “relative to” or “belonging to”.
The idea of a gap refers to a separation or an opening. Social, for its part, is that related to society: the community of individuals who interact with each other and who share the same culture.
A social gap, therefore, supposes the fracture of a society. The group that is crossed by a gap is not homogeneous, but there is a certain distance between its members in certain aspects.
The concept of social gap is linked to social inequality. Among the group of people who have their own home, university studies and access to health services, and the group of individuals who live in substandard housing, have no academic training and do not have the possibility of being treated in hospitals or clinics, it is recorded a crack. That stretch that separates the two groups can be understood as a social gap: the government must try to eliminate this gap, improving the living conditions of the less favored and favoring equity.
There are many causes behind the social gap. However, among the most significant are some like these:
-Corruption, which translates, above all, into tax evasions and tax havens by those in the upper echelons. A situation that affects the economy of the country.
-The existence of unfair tax systems that establish that those who have the least continue to have to pay more than those who have a more buoyant economy.
-The privatization of public services is also responsible for the aforementioned gap, since it makes it difficult for people who do not have a solid economy to access them.
-The unfair distribution of land as well as investment by a country is another cause of the existence and growth of the social gap.
It is possible to measure the social gap from different angles: it can be calculated according to the level of income, education, quality of employment or the characteristics of the house, to name a few possibilities. When social gaps are very marked, it is common for acts of violence to be recorded frequently, since society is disintegrated.
The reduction of social gaps, in this framework, contributes to the pacification of society and favors the development of an inclusive project, where all members of the community feel part of the whole and work with a common goal.
