Female Participation in Household Decision Making and the Justification of Wife Beating in Bangladesh

Abstract

We examined female participation in household decision making and its association with the justification of wife beating in Bangladesh. We used nationally representative data from the 2014 Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey. Our sample consisted of currently married women of age 15 to 49 years ( n = 16,463). Chi-square tests and multilevel logistic regression models were performed. Approximately 84% of women in the survey were participants in at least one household decision, and 72% reported that wife beating is not justified in any circumstance. Women who reported their participation in at least one type of household decision less frequently reported that wife beating could be justified than those who did not participate in any household decisions (adjusted odds ratio = 1.49; 95% confidence interval = [1.25, 1.78]). In addition to participation in household decision making, other factors including age at first marriage, females' and their husbands' education, religion, parity, contraceptive use, and socioeconomic status were associated with the justification of wife beating. The results indicate that female participation in household decision making is significantly associated with the justification of wife beating in Bangladesh. Further study is needed, but the results suggest that policy makers should consider interventions proven to empower women and lead to increased participation in decision making as methods that may reduce domestic violence against women.

Magnitude of Intimate Partner Violence and Associated Factors among Pregnant Women in Ethiopia

“…Women with low decision-making power who experience household issues were 2.6 times more likely to have experienced IPV than those who had a high capacity of decision-making in the household issues. is is consistent with a study conducted in Bangladesh [34]. e possible reason might be the culture of the communities that prefer women to be subordinated to men rather than making a sole decision.…”

Does Relation Between Women’s Justification of Wife Beating and Intimate Partner Violence Differ in Context of Husband’s Controlling Attitudes in Nigeria?

“…Research suggests the need to examine attitudes of women toward husband wife beating and explore ways to inform interventions for lowering IPV (Alam, Tareque, Peet, Rahman, & Mahmud, 2018; Hindin, 2003). A great deal of evidence shows that it is common for women to justify wife beating in sub-Saharan Africa.…”

“…Studies are still needed to identify under what conditions approval of wife beating are most likely to provoke IPV. It has been suggested that women’s justification of wife beating may increase their likelihood of incurring IPV in various circumstances (Alam et al, 2018; Devenish, Hooley, & Mellor, 2018), particularly in sub-Sahara African contexts where men are expected to endorse controlling and domineering attitudes toward women (Amoakohene, 2004). Previous studies in Nigeria have shown that husband’s domineering attitudes increase the risk of male-perpetrated IPV (Nwabunike & Tenkorang, 2015; Sunmola, Mayungbo, Fayehun, Opayemi, & Morakinyo, 2018), it is not clearly known whether these husband’s attitudes also influence the risk of women’s justification of wife beating.…”

Physical Intimate Partner Violence Among Pregnant Women in Ofla District, Tigray, Ethiopia

“…Decision-Making Power: High decision-making power is when a woman made a sole discussion alone or with here intimate partner on " how to use the money earned by her or her partner on healthcare for herself, major household purchases, and visits to her family or relatives. Otherwise (partner alone or other person decides in those issues) it categorized as low discussion maker [19].…”