Recognizing the child’s right to protection from physical violence: An update on progress and a call to action

Durrant, Joan E.; Stewart-Tufescu, Ashley; Afifi, Tracie O.

doi:10.1016/j.chiabu.2019.104297

Cited by 22 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…Country-level normativeness moderated some of these associations. These results align with growing recognition that all children have the right to be protected from physical violence (Durrant et al, 2019) and that eliminating all forms of physical punishment in homes, schools, and other settings is necessary to promote the well-being of children.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 69%

Global perspectives on physical and nonphysical discipline: A Bayesian multilevel analysis

Grogan‐Kaylor

Castillo

Pace

et al. 2021

International Journal of Behavioral Development

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Background and Objective: Sixty countries worldwide have banned the use of physical punishment, yet little is known about the association of physical and nonphysical forms of child discipline with child development in a global context. The objective of this study is to examine whether physical punishment and nonphysical discipline are associated with child socioemotional functioning in a global sample of families from 62 countries and whether country-level normativeness of physical punishment and nonphysical discipline moderated those associations. Methods: Data for this study are from 215,885 families in the fourth and fifth rounds of the United Nations Children’s Fund Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys. Bayesian multilevel logistic models were used to analyze the associations of physical punishment and nonphysical discipline (i.e., taking away privileges and verbal reasoning) with three different outcomes representing children’s socioemotional functioning: getting along well with other children, aggression, and becoming distracted. Results: The use of physical punishment was not associated with getting along with other children, was associated with increased aggression, and was associated with increases in distraction. Taking away privileges was associated with lower levels of getting along with other children, higher levels of aggression, and higher levels of becoming distracted. Verbal reasoning (i.e., explaining why a behavior was wrong) was associated with higher levels of getting along with other children, higher levels of aggression, and higher levels of becoming distracted. Country-level normativeness moderated some of these associations but in general the direction of effects was consistent. Conclusions: Results suggest that eliminating physical punishment would benefit children across the globe and align with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which calls for all children to be free from physical violence. More attention needs to be focused on the associations of nonphysical forms of discipline with child functioning across the globe.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 69%

Global perspectives on physical and nonphysical discipline: A Bayesian multilevel analysis

Grogan‐Kaylor

Castillo

Pace

et al. 2021

International Journal of Behavioral Development

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“…This statistical indistinguishability may be because the underlying behaviorhitting children-has the same damaging effect on children, despite the presence of legal guidelines that attempt to differentiate between physical punishment and child maltreatment. 40 Also consistent with study hypotheses, ACEs were associated with internalizing behavior problems; however, somewhat in contrast with attachment theory and with our expectations, spanking was not associated with internalizing behavior after controlling for exposure to ACEs. 41 Notably, prior FFCWS studies that examined the link between spanking and internalizing behavior demonstrate similar mixed findings.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

“…53,54 This effort may include bans on any form of physical punishment, including spanking, as researchers have called for a shift in conceptualization of any hitting of children as abusive behavior and argued that based on the empirical evidence, "spanking be included as an adverse experience." [11][12][13]40 The present study is not without limitations. Because the FFCWS oversampled children born to unmarried mothers in urban areas, the study sample is not representative of all families living in the US.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Spanking Have Similar Associations with Early Behavior Problems

Lee

Grogan‐Kaylor

2021

The Journal of Pediatrics

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Objectives To examine whether adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and physical punishment (ie, spanking) are unique risk factors for behavior problems in early childhood, and whether ACEs moderate the associations of spanking with child behavior problems. Study design We conducted prospective, longitudinal analyses on 2380 families in the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study. Mothers reported outcomes of externalizing and internalizing behavior problems at age 5 years; and the main predictors, ACEs and spanking, at age 3 years. ACEs included 9 items: physical abuse, emotional abuse, physical neglect, emotional neglect, mother's exposure to intimate partner violence, parental mental health problem, parental substance use, parental incarceration, and parental death. Multilevel models examined the associations between ACEs, spanking, and behavior problems, and the moderating effect of ACEs in the associations of spanking with behavior problems. Analyses were adjusted for preexisting behavior problems, demographics, and neighborhood conditions. Results ACEs (b = 0.028; P < .001) and spanking (b = 0.041; P < .001) at 3 years were unique risk factors for increased externalizing behavior problems at 5 years, after controlling for covariates. The magnitude of the associations of ACEs and spanking with externalizing behavior were statistically indistinguishable. ACEs did not moderate the association between spanking and externalizing behavior. Conclusions ACEs and spanking have similar associations in predicting child externalizing behavior. Results support calls to consider physical punishment as a form of ACE. Our findings also underscore the importance of assessing exposure to ACEs and physical punishment among young children and providing appropriate intervention to children at risk.

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“… 16 17 Further, researchers have called for the global implementation of evidence-based interventions that reduce the use of parental spanking. 12 However, to inform these global efforts, it is necessary to examine the role of risk and protective factors for spanking across cultures.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multilevel ecological analysis of the predictors of spanking across 65 countries

et al. 2021

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ObjectiveEnding violence against children is critical to promote the health and socioemotional development of children across the globe. To this end, the UNICEF and the WHO have called for the abolishment of spanking, which is the most pervasive form of physical violence against children worldwide. This study used an ecological perspective to examine micro-level and macro-level predictors of parental spanking across 65 countries.ParticipantsData came from the fourth and fifth rounds of the UNICEF Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys, which were administered between 2009 and 2017 (N=613 861 households). We examined the predictors of spanking using multilevel logistic regression analysis.ResultsMicro-level factors (ie, those observed at the familial level) were stronger predictors of spanking in comparison to macro-level factors (ie, those observed at the community and country level). Caregiver belief that children need physical punishment in order to be raised properly was the largest risk factor for spanking (OR=2.55, p<0.001). Older child age, the child being female, the head of the household having a secondary education or higher, and higher household wealth were protective factors against spanking, while a higher number of people living in the household was a risk factor for spanking. Living in an urban community was the only macro-level factor associated with spanking.ConclusionsIntervention at the micro-level and macro-level are important to reduce violence against children across the globe.

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Recognizing the child’s right to protection from physical violence: An update on progress and a call to action

Cited by 22 publications

References 19 publications

Global perspectives on physical and nonphysical discipline: A Bayesian multilevel analysis

Global perspectives on physical and nonphysical discipline: A Bayesian multilevel analysis

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Spanking Have Similar Associations with Early Behavior Problems

Multilevel ecological analysis of the predictors of spanking across 65 countries

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