Men of colour, family violence and the global North: A critical interpretive synthesis
Keywords:
men of color, ethnically diverse, family violence, cultural othering, masculinitiesAbstract
Through a critical interpretive synthesis method, this paper examines the ways in which empirical research has constructed ethnically diverse men of colour’s use of family violence in the global North. The findings identify six major interrelated themes including (1) women’s employment and men’s fragility, (2) men’s inability to fulfil their breadwinner role, (3) domestic work in the global North, (4) social experiences and relational dynamics, (5) cultural transition and men’s resistance, (6) men’s experiences of trauma and distress. The analysis in this review employs feminist and postcolonial theories to demonstrate a need to increase men’s visibility through abandoning static constructions of masculinities and discursive constructions of cultural othering. A vital implication for social workers is to navigate methods to decolonise their research and practice with ethnically diverse people of colour. In such an approach, men of colour’s use of family violence is not merely an inevitable outcome of their trauma, marginalisation, or inability to transition to the modern world but rather a conscious choice that is underpinned by several intersecting factors. Recognising men of colour’s capability to make choices is vital to working with them towards making safer choices for women and children in their families.
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