Gender‐Role Attitudes Among Immigrant Latinas: Empowering Women

• Author: Karina Villalba,Jennifer Attonito,Patria Rojas,Jessy G. Dévieux,Daisy Ramirez‐Ortiz
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/wmh3.288
• Published date: 01 December 2018
• Date: 01 December 2018

Gender-Role Attitudes Among Immigrant Latinas:

Empowering Women

Karina Villalba , Daisy Ramirez-Ortiz, Jessy G. D

evieux, Jennifer Attonito,

and Patria Rojas

In general Latinos hold more conservative attitudes regarding gender roles when compared to

Whites. However, Latinos born in the United States with higher education are more likely

to have egalitarian gender role attitudes compared to Latino immigrants. The aim of this study was

to analyze the relationship between gender role attitudes and acculturation, marianismo, and

relationship control, among Latina immigrants living in the United States. A hierarchical regression

and correlation analysis were used to measure the outcome of this study. A total of 234 women were

included in the study with a mean age of 34 years old. The education level was less than high school

(53 percent), with the majority employed (54 percent). The average time living in the United States

was 8 years (SD ¼2.0). Acculturation, marianismo, and relationship control were signif‌icantly

associated with gender-role, R

2

¼.207, F (3, 95) ¼11.3, p ¼0.001. The correlation analysis showed

an inverse relationship between egalitarian attitudes and marianismo (r ¼.304, p <.0005) and a

positive relationship with acculturation (r ¼.295, p <.0005). Egalitarian gender role attitudes were

observed with an inverse bidirectional relationship between marianismo and acculturation among

Latino immigrant women living in the United States.

KEY WORDS: gender-role, women, Latina/Hispanic

Introduction

The feminist movement in the United States has inf‌luenced policy changes in

the labor force and women’s health (Anderson & Johnson, 2003; Robnett &

Anderson, 2017). At the individual level, adopting a feminist identity has been

linked to positive outcomes for women such as a sense of well-being, sexual

health, and body satisfaction (Murnen & Smolak, 2009; Yoder, Perry, & Saal,

2007). A review of policy changes in the United States by Weldon and Htun

(2013) showed that movements initiated by feminist activism in the last 40 years

substantially changed public opinion and promoted policy change by motivating

voters, civic leaders, and activists to pressure policymakers to respond to the

demand of the movement’s goals (Weldon & Htun, 2013). For example, #MeToo

World Medical & Health Policy, Vol. 10, No. 4, 2018

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doi: 10.1002/wmh3.288

#2018 Policy Studies Organization