Corporal punishment and children's externalizing problems: A cross-sectional study of Tanzanian primary school aged children

Abstract

The adverse effect of harsh corporal punishment on mental health and psychosocial functioning in children has been repeatedly suggested by studies in industrialized countries. Nevertheless, corporal punishment has remained common practice not only in many homes, but is also regularly practiced in schools, particularly in low-income countries, as a measure to maintain discipline. Proponents of corporal punishment have argued that the differences in culture and industrial development might also be reflected in a positive relationship between the use of corporal punishment and improving behavioral problems in low-income nations. In the present study we assessed the occurrence of corporal punishment at home and in school in Tanzanian primary school students. We also examined the association between corporal punishment and externalizing problems. The 409 children (52% boys) from grade 2 to 7 had a mean age of 10.49 (SD=1.89) years. Nearly all children had experienced corporal punishment at some point during their lifetime both in family and school contexts. Half of the respondents reported having experienced corporal punishment within the last year from a family member. A multiple sequential regression analysis revealed that corporal punishment by parents or by caregivers was positively related to children's externalizing problems. The present study provides evidence that Tanzanian children of primary school age are frequently exposed to extreme levels of corporal punishment, with detrimental consequences for externalizing behavior. Our findings emphasize the need to inform parents, teachers and governmental organizations, especially in low-income countries, about the adverse consequences of using corporal punishment be it at home or at school.

Children's experiences of corporal punishment: A qualitative study in an urban township of South Africa

“…Many of the children in this study report commonly being hit with objects like belts, whips and planks, both at home and at school for minor transgressions, similar to reports in other studies (Hecker et al, 2013; Sanapo & Nakamura, 2011). This places them at an increased risk for physical abuse (Zolotor, Theodore, Chang, Berkoff, & Runyan, 2008), in a country where the rates of child physical abuse are already very high (Meinck et al, 2014), with some studies indicating prevalence rates as high as 19% (Madu, 2003) and 43% for orphan and other vulnerable children (Thurman & Kidman, 2011).…”

“…The ubiquity of corporal punishment by parents in these children’s lives is in line with global findings (UNICEF, 2003). The prevalence of our participants’ experience of corporal punishment at school is also in line with findings from rural and poor schools in South Africa (Kipperberg, 2007; Ward, 2007), as well as other countries in Africa (Hecker et al, 2013; Slonim-Nevo & Mukuka, 2007). …”

“…One of these areas is the use of corporal punishment as a discipline method (Asawa, Hansen & Flood, 2008). The association between the use of corporal punishment at home and at school and poor child outcomes has been demonstrated (Gershoff, 2013), including mental health problems and later aggressive behavior (Hecker, Hermenau, Isele, & Elbert, 2013; Ma, Han, Grogan-Kaylor, Delva, & Castillo, 2012). The use of physical discipline methods has also been shown to increase the risk for more severe forms of abuse (Meinck, Cluver, Boyes, & Mhlongo, 2015).…”

“…The use of physical discipline methods has also been shown to increase the risk for more severe forms of abuse (Meinck, Cluver, Boyes, & Mhlongo, 2015). Corporal punishment continues to be prevalent in many countries around the world, both in the home and in schools (Akmatov, 2011; Hecker et al, 2013). In a report on corporal punishment in 35 low-and middle-income countries (LMIC), 6 of the 10 countries in which corporal punishment was found to be very prevalent are in Sub-Saharan Africa with more than 80% of children in these countries reporting being beaten at home (UNICEF, 2010).…”

School corporal punishment in global perspective: prevalence, outcomes, and efforts at intervention

“…In Egypt, 26% of boys and 18% of girls reported that they had been injured by school corporal punishment, including bumps, contusions, wounds, and fractures (Youssef et al, 1998). A remarkably similar rate of injury was found in the United Republic of Tanzania, where nearly a quarter of the 408 primary school children surveyed said they experienced corporal punishment so severe that they were injured (Heckler, Hermenau, Isele, & Elbert, 2014). In the United States, schoolchildren have suffered a range of physical injuries that often require medical treatment, including bruises, hematomas, nerve and muscle damage, cuts, and broken bones (e.g., Block, 2013; C. A. ex rel G.A.…”