Revisiting embeddedness and intersectionality in the 5M framework: a systematic review of women's entrepreneurship in Latin America
Journal
International Journal of Gender and Entrepreneurship
Publisher
Emerald
Date Issued
2026-06-09
Author(s)
Rivera-Pesquera, Martha
Type
Article
Abstract
Purpose
This study examines the intersectional experiences of women entrepreneurs (WE) in Latin America (LA). We use the 5M framework as a lens to analyze the unique challenges and opportunities faced by LA WE. Although the 5M model has advanced research beyond deficit perspectives of women's entrepreneurship, it assumes that embeddedness is sufficiently captured through the combined macro-meso “M.” This assumption may overlook how gendered entrepreneurial processes develop in contexts like Latin America, where macro-cultural forces such as machismo and mestizaje influence distinct forms of embeddedness.
Design/methodology/approach
The study conducts a 20-year systematic literature review of peer-reviewed English- and Spanish-language literature on women's entrepreneurship in Latin America. The review includes first-tier grey literature to capture and abductively explore underrepresented regional evidence. In doing so, the study synthesizes a fragmented body of research and, through an abductive approach, develops a contextually grounded refinement of the 5M framework.
Findings
The review examines how macro-cultural forces, such as machismo and mestizaje, shape intersectional meso-level spaces in which women entrepreneurs operate in Latin America. Our analysis suggests that gendered entrepreneurial processes are experienced through distinct meso-level embedded spaces, including entrepreneurial ecosystems, networks, communities, and family structures, where the 5M elements – markets, money, management, and motherhood – are enacted. In these spaces, relational gender identities (mother/other) mediate entrepreneurial agency, creating both enabling and constraining dynamics shaped by class-based intersectionality.
Originality/value
Responding to calls for further interpretation of the 5M framework, this study provides a contextually grounded refinement using Latin American evidence. In doing so, the paper revisits the embeddedness and intersectional assumptions of the 5M framework to highlight how macro-cultural forces, meso-level spaces, and relational gender identities intersect in shaping women's entrepreneurial experiences. Without further testing, these insights should be viewed as contextually bounded rather than as a universally applicable model.
This study examines the intersectional experiences of women entrepreneurs (WE) in Latin America (LA). We use the 5M framework as a lens to analyze the unique challenges and opportunities faced by LA WE. Although the 5M model has advanced research beyond deficit perspectives of women's entrepreneurship, it assumes that embeddedness is sufficiently captured through the combined macro-meso “M.” This assumption may overlook how gendered entrepreneurial processes develop in contexts like Latin America, where macro-cultural forces such as machismo and mestizaje influence distinct forms of embeddedness.
Design/methodology/approach
The study conducts a 20-year systematic literature review of peer-reviewed English- and Spanish-language literature on women's entrepreneurship in Latin America. The review includes first-tier grey literature to capture and abductively explore underrepresented regional evidence. In doing so, the study synthesizes a fragmented body of research and, through an abductive approach, develops a contextually grounded refinement of the 5M framework.
Findings
The review examines how macro-cultural forces, such as machismo and mestizaje, shape intersectional meso-level spaces in which women entrepreneurs operate in Latin America. Our analysis suggests that gendered entrepreneurial processes are experienced through distinct meso-level embedded spaces, including entrepreneurial ecosystems, networks, communities, and family structures, where the 5M elements – markets, money, management, and motherhood – are enacted. In these spaces, relational gender identities (mother/other) mediate entrepreneurial agency, creating both enabling and constraining dynamics shaped by class-based intersectionality.
Originality/value
Responding to calls for further interpretation of the 5M framework, this study provides a contextually grounded refinement using Latin American evidence. In doing so, the paper revisits the embeddedness and intersectional assumptions of the 5M framework to highlight how macro-cultural forces, meso-level spaces, and relational gender identities intersect in shaping women's entrepreneurial experiences. Without further testing, these insights should be viewed as contextually bounded rather than as a universally applicable model.