Scottish primary school children think it is acceptable for a man to hit a woman if they have done something wrong according to a new study.
Most of the 11 and 12-year-old children questioned in the study carried out by a lecturer at Edinburgh Napier University thought it was wrong to be violent but agreed that if a wife had not made the tea on time it might be acceptable to push her.
In addition, about 80% said the tea should have been ready and only 20% suggested the husband could have made it himself according by the research by Dr Nancy Lombard.
Children also said it was justified for a husband to be violent towards his wife if she had an affair.
The study also found the majority of the schoolchildren thought it was reasonable for a man to express his dissatisfaction.
Dr Lombard said: "They all said violence was wrong but, when we looked beneath that, they often saw it as justified by the actions of the woman."
The research involved questionnaires and in-depth group discussions with 89 P7 pupils in Glasgow classrooms, and the findings will be discussed at a conference in the city on Wednesday that has been jointly organised by the university and Scottish Women's Aid.
The study also suggested that girls' believed they would need to curtail their behaviour and aspirations once married.
One girl who took part said: "At the moment I want to be a dancer or a doctor. When I grow up I'm going to have two babies and work part-time in the shop down the road."
Campaigners have warned that Scotland faces a growing problem with domestic abuse.
The total number of domestic violence incidents recorded in 2008/09 was 53,681, representing an eight per cent rise on the previous 12 months.
Meanwhile, the Scottish Domestic Abuse Helpline (SDAH) has claimed the recent cold snap meant more women suffered domestic abuse.
The service saw a 22% drop in the number of calls during the worst winter on record.
SDAH believe the reduction came as a result of less women being able to get out of the house to make a call.
Lynda Bell, co-ordinator at the SDAH, said: "The snow may well have impacted on the number of calls as people couldn't get away from the house to phone the helpline from a mobile or they didn't have privacy to call from their own home.
"Train and bus services were disrupted, which meant that women hoping to leave an abusive partner felt they couldn't.
"This time of year does force the family together over a longer period of time, but when you can't escape the tension, it can blow up further and unfortunately it's women that tend to be on the receiving end of abuse."
Between December 26 and January 25 1,821 calls were made to the Domestic Abuse Helpline.
The number shows a drop of 526 calls from last year's total of 2,347 over the same period.
