The use of corporal punishment with children is a controversial subject. Corporal punishment (or physical punishment) is a punishment intended to cause physical pain on a person. Though banned from most schools these days, I still remember when “the strap” was used on school children found guilty of various contraventions and it still remains legal in various jurisdictions across the United States of America and other countries. Parents also continue to advocate its use when dealing with their own children despite being told about its consequences.
“Spare the rod, Spoil the child” is a famous proverb that is believed in most parts of the world. They say that physical discipline must be used in order to make the child feel responsible for his/her own actions. Many parents resort to spanking, though there have been calls for many U.S. states to pass no-spanking laws, they continue to insist on the right to use corporal punishment to discipline their own children. As a part of their parental duty, especially in traditional cultures, advocates of corporal punishment often cite the importance of physical punishments in training children in appropriate behavior. According to recent survey, 24 percent of one-year-old children and 33 percent of 3-year-olds are spanked in a given month, with girls being less likely to experience it than boys.
Long-term consequences are seen especially in young children who experience corporal punishment. Extensive research looking at how physical discipline affects children shows that corporal punishment can lead to later problems, including aggressive behavior and acting-out episodes that can occur in children as young as two or three years of age.
There are also other factors that seem to play a greater role in how children experiencing corporal punishment develop in later life. One of the most important of these factors is the quality of parenting that children experience. For example, children who experience positive parenting, for example, positive displays of affection, positive physical contact and positive verbal encouragement, tend not to be as affected by corporal punishment as children who are raised more harshly. There can be important gender differences as well with warm maternal parenting often overcoming the problems that boys might otherwise experience from a father’s harsh discipline. This can be the other way around for girls.
Whether a child develops later behavior problems can also be linked to early exposure to rejection, hostility or neglect from one or both parents. Children who experience corporal punishment while a parent is angry or frustrated appear more likely to become aggressive themselves than children who are disciplined by parents able to control their emotions, even after controlling for a child’s age, gender, and social background. This is usually due to modeling of behavior. Children in early ages observe and learn by imitating their parents’ behavior.
“Several studies have shown that coercive parenting practices are linked to anxiety,” says Françoise Maheu a professor at the Université de Montréal’s Department of Psychiatry and lead investigator of the study. According to research findings, anxiety disorders may result from an interplay of nature and nurture. Environmental changes such as beginning school, illness, poverty, and peer pressure as well as Heredity or genetic factors can all contribute to the development of an anxiety disorder. If the symptoms are not recognized and treated before time, it may lead to alcoholism, difficulties maintaining relationships, depression and increase risk for suicide as the child enters adolescence.
A new study published in the Journal of Family Psychology examines the effect that corporal punishment can have on two-year-olds and how it influences their later behavior. A team of researchers led by Marcos Mendez of Kansas State University’s Department of Family Studies and Human Services used data taken from the Family Transitions Project (FTP) funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. Started in 1994 and including participants from two earlier projects, the FTP is a community-based study of over 500 young people and their families followed from early childhood well into adulthood. The FTP was later expanded to include data on the firstborn child of each participant as well.
In the above study, information was collected for 218 couples with one first-born child each beginning when the child was two years of age and on a second occasion one year later. Data was collected using structured interviews, questionnaires and home visits, regarding three concerns. First concern was child’s externalizing behavior: whether or not the child was displaying significant aggression or attention problems. Examples of aggressive behavior included irritability, destructive behavior, temper tantrums, defiance, or disobedience. Attention problems included inability to sit still, difficulty concentrating, and rapid shifting from one activity to another. Second concern was regarding the use of corporal punishment. It was measured with a single question, “How often do you spank or slap your child when your child does something wrong?” Responses for this item were scaled from one (never) to five (always); Third concern was the type of parenting style. This was measured using trained observers assessing how both parents interacted with their child while completing a family interaction puzzle task. In this task, the child is asked to complete a puzzle that is too difficult to complete alone. Parents were instructed to allow the child to complete the task on their own if possible but to offer any assistance whenever necessary.
Observers assessed them on the basis of whether they showed any signs of irritations or coercive behavior as they helped their child to complete the puzzle. Parental style was rated according to their interaction style and response to child’s frustration. Based on these ratings, parents were either scored as showing negative parenting or positive parenting. Positive behaviors associated with positive parenting are: reasoning with their child, patiently instructing, and praise them at all correct steps.
Results showed that 67 percent of mothers and 68 percent of fathers reported slapping or spanking their children, at least occasionally. There were also no apparent gender differences between boys and girls in terms of how often they were physically disciplined. Gender differences start to appear around early adolescence and then fade out when they enter early adulthood.
It was concluded that children who were slapped or spanked at the age of two were more likely to show later problems with aggression and attention. Corporal punishment carried out by fathers seemed to be especially important, though the link between physical discipline and later difficulties also appeared to vary depending on harsh or positive parenting style shown by their mothers. In other words, when a child experienced frequent physical discipline from the father and also experienced harsh parenting from the mother, the likelihood of later problems becomes even greater. Children experiencing positive parenting behavior, especially from their mothers, are less likely to be adversely affected by physical discipline. As Marcos Mendez and his co-researchers point out, “providing clear, assertive, and responsive guidance to children largely protects them from developing later problems.” Maternal warmth seems to be particularly important, at least for small children.
While there are oppositions from those who believe strongly in their traditional beliefs, this study’s and many other study’s results do suggest that physical discipline, especially when combined with harsh parenting, can lead to later behavioral and attention problems, at least for toddlers. So, think carefully before resorting to spanking or slapping a child when they misbehave; the consequences can be more long-lasting than you think.