Table 1.

Opinions on the justifiability of wife beating, based on responses from 2139 slum-dwelling women interviewed at around 6 weeks postpartum

A husband is justified in hitting or beating his wife if…	n (%)
She shows disrespect for her in-laws	671 (31)
She doesn’t cook food properly	398 (19)
She goes out without telling him	413 (19)
She argues with him	391 (18)
She does not fulfill his expectations of her household or childcare duties	347 (16)
He loves her, so he has a right to beat her	291 (14)
She refuses to have sex with him	165 (8)
He suspects her of being unfaithful	146 (7)
He is drunk	136 (6)
He or his family are unhappy with her marriage contribution	102 (5)
Respondents	2139 (100)

Individual proportions do not sum to 100% because respondents could respond positively to more than one question.