Attitude towards Wife-Beating and Child Physical Punishment as Correlates of Child Maltreatment among Somali Women

Abstract

Attitude towards domestic violence and child corporal punishment contributes to child maltreatment, however, the interplay of these violent practices is not well researched in Africa. Thus, we sought to examine the association between child emotional and physical maltreatment, and women's attitude towards wife-beating and child physical punishment among Somali women. We used data collected in the 2011 Somaliland Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) from 4,820 households. We analyzed data from married/partnered women with children (n=1471) who were 15-49 years old. Bivariate associations were assessed by Chi-square test and multivariate logistic regressions were fitted to determine independent associations of women's attitude towards wife-beating and child physical punishment to child maltreatment variables. Overall, the proportion of children who experienced psychological aggression, moderate, or severe physical assaults were 71.5%, 70.2%, and 42.7%, respectively. Women's attitude towards wife-beating was not significantly associated with child maltreatment. However, we found significant associations between child maltreatment and women's attitude towards physical punishment. Health education programs focusing on changing cultural parenting beliefs may be useful in cultivating sound and effective childrearing strategies among Somali parents.