gender hierarchy. Elikplim's asserted: '*The man can tell his son not to go out and he'll listen but the woman can also tell the son the same thing but the son won't listen to his mom*'.

Men considered that the hierarchical gender structure described here, with men occupying the top most position, needed to be respected by the wives to prevent violence in their homes. Any challenge to it from a wife could result in beating from her husband. To argue and substantiate their view that a man is the head of the household, some men drew on religious teachings and texts. Danquah contended that: '*As Christ is the head of the church so is a man to the house*'. Several of the men drew on the higher authoritywere solely reserved for women and others exclusively meant for men*'.

The gender roles for women centered around the home -- and this is best shown in Adjo's explanation that: '*The difference here is, in the case of a woman, your responsibilities are to clean the home, tidy up everywhere including the toilets, and cook for the man*'. In the interviews, it appeared that the need to reinforce men's supremacy over women, primarily informed the gender roles for women. For these men, women's responsibilities were menial and domestic.

On the other hand, there were roles that were clearly reserved for men. Many men expressed the view that a man's place is outside the home; where he is expected to toil to earn money for his family's upkeep. This provider role