**2. Materials and Methods**

The methodology used in this study is based on the traditional qualitative techniques of the social sciences. In this sense, semi-structured interviews and documentary analysis were used. The type of sampling used was non-probability and convenience sampling (Kinnear and Taylor, 1998). In this sense, the selection of the key agents was determined by the degree of involvement, accessibility, and participation in the organization of the festivity and its visitors. Our study was exploratory and, therefore, preliminary, in order to increase the knowledge on the subject that concerns us in this work.

The research team has chosen this period of time, since it is from 2003 that the greatest interference of the municipality in the organization of the festival was identified, identifying progressive changes from the base date.

In the document analysis, analyzing texts, photographs, videos, and images related to the festival, which we were able to access, was essential, spanning from 2003 to 2018.

The analysis of results has followed the process of triangulation and coding of information through phrased codes and has considered the principle of information saturation, in addition to the technique of underlining and the hierarchy of colors.

In July 2018, interviews were conducted during the festival. The key agents selected for our study formed a sample of the inhabitants, the visitors, and the representatives of the sectors related to organizing the festival, such as the mayor or the parish priest and the representatives of the religious and civic committees.

We determined the diverse factors related to religious activities, clothing, entertainment, music, and gastronomy for data collection. All these factors were cultural manifestations that could be more easily converted into consumer goods and, at the same time, represent a clear expression of the community's cultural identity, thus providing us with the evidence of the evolution and sociocultural modernization. Community perception and participation were also recorded during the interviews conducted in writing and through videos. Further, the sample of key population agents was organized to set up semi-structured interviews, and a total of 43 people were interviewed. Age groups and the number of times the religious festivity of Lajas was attended have been considered, so the participants have been part of the process of cultural identity in Lajas (Table 1). The age groups are as follows.


**Table 1.** People interviewed during the celebration San Antonio de Padua festival in July 2018. Source: Created by the author, 2018.
