Experiences With Machismo and Pain: Latino Veterans

摘要

Physical and emotional pain from combat-related injuries and experiences areserious problems among Latino veterans. This study fleshes out existing culturalconstructs and concepts (e.g., machismo and familism) from the participants’point of view and may serve as an important step in unraveling the influence ofLatino culture on pain, providing a deeper and more critical theorizationbetween masculinity, race/ethnicity, and the military. Using 26 interviews fromU.S.-born Latino veterans, this study analyzes the meanings and experiences ofpain from combat, masculinity, and how culture affects expressions of pain. Thefollowing themes emerged: (a) Latino culture and ethnicity, (b) machismo andpain, (c) the transforming self, and (d) feeling disconnected and dealing withpain. Overall, respondents were governed by strict gender standards influencedby their ethnic identity and exacerbated by military masculinity. Findingssuggest that the study of race/ethnicity acts as a fundamental framework fromwhich to understand the experiences and behaviors of pain.