Have US Latinos heard of machismo, and how do they describe it?

Most Hispanic adults in the US have heard of the term machismo, but the concept can mean many things. This chapter explores the different ways in which Hispanic adults describe machismo.

Awareness of the term “machismo”

About eight in ten Hispanic adults (83%) say they have heard of the term machismo, while 16% say they have never heard of it before.

Most Latinos in most demographic subgroups are familiar with the term. Similar proportions of men and women say they have heard of it (81% and 85%). However, awareness varies somewhat due to other factors:

• Language: Awareness of machismo is higher among Latinos who primarily speak Spanish (89%) or are bilingual in English and Spanish (88%), compared to those who are dominantly English speakers (73%).
• Immigrant generation: 90% of Latinos who are immigrants and 84% of second-generation Americans have heard the term—more than the share of third-generation or older who have (69%).
• Education: 92% of Latinos with a bachelor’s degree are familiar with the term, compared to 86% with some college experience and 78% with a high school diploma or less.

What “machismo” means to American Latinos, in their own words

The survey asked an open-ended question to Latin American adults who know the term about what machismo means, in their words.

‘Machismo’ and ideas about gender in society

Many respondents associate machismo with broader ideas about gender in society. A quarter of Hispanic adults who are aware of the term said machismo is belief that men are superior or better than women.

Some 19% said it was machismo belief that men and women should have certain roles in society based on gender. This includes 13% who state that machismo is the belief that a man’s role should be to be a leader or decision-maker and 6% who say that machismo means that a woman’s role should be to take care of the home or children.

“For some men, there are jobs that are only for men and they believe that women are only there to take care of the children and clean the house,” said one immigrant woman in her late 40s.

Additionally, 10% of the responses were approx men and women are treated unequally in society. One immigrant man in his early 50s described machismo as “men [being] above women in many social, political and economic matters.”

And 7% said machismo was the result social or cultural expectations about masculinity and the pressure it puts on men and women to behave in a certain way.

One US-born man in his mid-20s described machismo as “a social construct in which men are expected to be strong, intimidating [or] stoic along with several other stereotypical traits. … Historically, Hispanic men have been expected to be masculine which has led to toxic behavior within the culture.”

‘Machismo’ and specific behavior or characteristics

Some respondents described machismo with certain behaviors or characteristics. About a quarter of Latino adults who have heard of machismo (22%) say it means that behave with pronounced masculinity or have masculine pride, or as one immigrant in the early 60s put it, “to act manly or like a macho man.”

Behaving dominantly or aggressively appeared in 17% of responses. This includes 5% who said machismo means behaving violently, abusively or threateningly. One US-born woman in her early 20s said machismo “is a culture where violence and sexism are deeply intertwined.”

About 12% said machismo means acting strong, firm or unemotional. One man said that machismo is “the stereotypical strong, capable Spanish man.” [who] shows little softness in action or emotion” like “a strong silent type [that] has been featured in movies” (born in USA, early 70s).

Additionally, 11% of Latino adults who are aware of machismo said the concept means acting self-important or egotistical.

A small proportion (6%) also described machismo as acting confident, chivalrous or protective. As one respondent put it, machismo means being “a man that other men can look up to” (US-born male, early 50s).

Respondents often mentioned several characteristics in their answers. For example, one respondent said that machismo “usually refers to men who puff out their chests or are overbearing to their colleagues or family. I see it as [having] negative connotation, but I’ve heard it used in a chivalrous context, referring to gentlemanly action; like holding a woman’s bag or protecting a woman from another man” (US-born male, mid-30s).