Kinship ties and violence against married women in Ghana

The socialization of men and women in Ghana is understood as conferring either patrilineal or matrilineal rights, privileges and responsibilities. Yet, previous studies that explored the causes of domestic and marital violence in sub-Saharan Africa and Ghana paid less attention to kin group affiliation and how the power dynamics within such groups affect marital violence. Using the most recent Ghana Demographic and Health Survey (GDHS) conducted in 2008, and applying Ordinary Least Squares, this study examined what influences physical, sexual and emotional violence among matrilineal and patrilineal kin groups. Results show that patrilineal ever-married women experience more physical and sexual violence than matrilineal ever-married women. However, matrilineal ever-married women experience more male partner emotional violence than patrilineal ever-married women. Male dominance is the strongest independent predictor of physical, sexual and emotional violence. Also, women with higher education experienced reduced levels of sexual violence in patrilineal societies compared to those with no education. Contextualizing these findings within feminist scholarships on domestic violence against women, they suggest that interventions aimed at eradicating the occurrence of domestic violence in Ghanaian communities should appreciate the dynamics of kinship norms