A Meta-Analysis of the Published Research on the Affective, Cognitive, and Behavioral Effects of Corporal Punishment

Abstract

The present study is a meta-analysis of the published research on the effects of corporal punishment on affective, cognitive, and behavioral outcomes. The authors included 70 studies published between 1961 and 2000 and involving 47,751 people. Most of the studies were published between 1990 and 2000 (i.e., 53 or 68%) and were conducted in the United States (65 or 83.3%). Each of the dependent variables was coded, and effect sizes (ds) were computed. Average unweighted and weighted ds for each of the outcome variables were .35 and .20 for affective outcomes, .33 and .06 for cognitive outcomes, and .25 and .21 for behavioral outcomes, respectively. The analyses suggested small negative behavioral and emotional effects of corporal punishment and almost no effect of such punishment on cognition. Analyses of several potentially moderating variables, such as gender or socioeconomic status, and the frequency or age of first experience of corporal punishment, the relationship of the person administering the discipline, and the technique of the discipline all had no affect on effect size outcome. There was insufficient data about a number of the moderator variables to conduct meaningful analyses. The results of the present meta-analysis suggest that exposure to corporal punishment does not substantially increase the risk to youth of developing affective, cognitive, or behavioral pathologies.

The moderating effect of parental warmth on the association between spanking and child aggression: a longitudinal approach

“…Findings from studies that support the relationship between physical punishment and child behaviour problems differ in the degree to which spanking accounts for the variance in child behaviour. For example, Paolucci and Violato (2004) reported that corporal punishment only had a small negative effect on child behavioural outcomes.…”

“…For example, a metaanalysis conducted by Gershoff (2002) provides evidence that parental corporal punishment is associated with negative child behaviours including decreased moral internalization, increased aggression and antisocial behaviour and decreased overall mental health. Other studies suggest that this association remains even after accounting for the effects of child factors such as early behaviour problems, genetic risk and temperament (Cohen & Brook, 1995;Grogan-Kaylor, 2005;Kandel & Wu, 1995;O'Connor, Deater-Deckard, Fulker, Rutter, & Plomin, 1998;Paolucci & Violato, 2004;Straus, Sugarman, & Giles-Sims, 1997;Weiss, Dodge, Bates, & Pettit, 1992) and family factors such as income, race, family structure and maternal employment and education (Grogan-Kaylor, 2005;Shumow, Vandell, & Posner, 1998;Straus et al, 1997). Using the National Longitudinal Study of Youth (NLSY), McLoyd and Smith (2002) followed a group of children over a 4-year period.…”

“…Those who do not believe that non-violent physical discipline is associated with negative child outcomes argue that corporal punishment can be beneficial under some circumstances including the following: when it is administered by emotionally supportive parents, when it is used sparingly and non-violently and when it is used conditionally in response to defiance (Larzelere, 1996;Larzelere & Kuhn, 2005;Paolucci & Violato, 2004). Findings from a meta-analysis conducted by Larzelere and Kuhn (2005) suggest that conditional physical punishment is more effective than alternate discipline strategies at reducing non-compliance and antisocial behaviour especially when it is used to reinforce milder discipline tactics and when the physical punishment is not severe.…”

Corporal Punishment of Children in the Jamaican Context

“…Moreover, proponents of corporal punishment draw support from research challenging the validity of information about the adverse effects of physical punishment on optimal child development. For example, some relevant research (e.g., Larzelere, Cox, & Smith, 2010;Paolucci & Violato, 2004) has found no evidence that spanking increased children's susceptibility to developmental problems and antisocial behaviors. Opponents of corporal punishment in Jamaica counter that spanking as such is rare in the Jamaican context.…”

“…Contrarily, some researchers (e.g., Baumrind, Larzelere, & Cowan, 2002;Paolucci & Violato, 2004), have insisted that spanking be differentiated from abuse and conceptualized accordingly. For example, Paolucci and Violato (2004) defined spanking as physically non-injurious discipline administered with the intention of modifying the child's behavior. This is in contrast to physical abuse which denotes severe actions such as slapping the face, beating, choking, or other repeated demoralizing treatment.…”