Machismo: a culturally constructed concept / by Miriam Viviana Ceballos

Machismo has been principally perceived as a negative concept primarily by Latinos. Latinos have constructed this concept as male superiority and dominance over women. This negative perception of machismo can create a power struggle between men and women that can potentially lead relationships and families to experience domestic violence. This study used mixed methods, quantitative and qualitative, to identify machismo perceptions of not only Latino men but men of diverse cultures, based on their life experiences with female partners and family roles. Participants were men, both students and staff who were randomly selected from California State University, Fresno. Participant ages varied from 18-60 years and from different ethnicities: Latinos, African, Asian, Indian and White Americans._x000D_This study identified machismo being present in every different culture as men having dominance, power, control, and superiority over women. The research also identified the existence of negative and positive perceptions in younger and older generations. Exploring and identifying perceptions of machismo can potentially improve lives of oppressed individuals who experienced machismo negatively. Implications for social work include understanding perceptions of machismo to potentially help practitioners gain a better understanding of positive perceptions, negative perceptions and disguises of machismo in other cultures