TY - JOUR
T1 - Change over time in parents’ beliefs about and reported use of corporal punishment in eight countries with and without legal bans
AU - Lansford, Jennifer E.
AU - Cappa, Claudia
AU - Putnick, Diane L.
AU - Bornstein, Marc H.
AU - Deater-Deckard, Kirby
AU - Bradley, Robert
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2016 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2017/9
Y1 - 2017/9
N2 - Stopping violence against children is prioritized in goal 16 of the Sustainable Development Goals adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 2015. All forms of child corporal punishment have been outlawed in 50 countries as of October 2016. Using data from 56,371 caregivers in eight countries that participated in UNICEF's Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey, we examined change from Time 1 (2005–6) to Time 2 (2008–13) in national rates of corporal punishment of 2- to 14-year-old children and in caregivers’ beliefs regarding the necessity of using corporal punishment. One of the participating countries outlawed corporal punishment prior to Time 1 (Ukraine), one outlawed corporal punishment between Times 1 and 2 (Togo), two outlawed corporal punishment after Time 2 (Albania and Macedonia), and four have not outlawed corporal punishment as of 2016 (Central African Republic, Kazakhstan, Montenegro, and Sierra Leone). Rates of reported use of corporal punishment and belief in its necessity decreased over time in three countries; rates of reported use of severe corporal punishment decreased in four countries. Continuing use of corporal punishment and belief in the necessity of its use in some countries despite legal bans suggest that campaigns to promote awareness of legal bans and to educate parents regarding alternate forms of discipline are worthy of international attention and effort along with legal bans themselves.
AB - Stopping violence against children is prioritized in goal 16 of the Sustainable Development Goals adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 2015. All forms of child corporal punishment have been outlawed in 50 countries as of October 2016. Using data from 56,371 caregivers in eight countries that participated in UNICEF's Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey, we examined change from Time 1 (2005–6) to Time 2 (2008–13) in national rates of corporal punishment of 2- to 14-year-old children and in caregivers’ beliefs regarding the necessity of using corporal punishment. One of the participating countries outlawed corporal punishment prior to Time 1 (Ukraine), one outlawed corporal punishment between Times 1 and 2 (Togo), two outlawed corporal punishment after Time 2 (Albania and Macedonia), and four have not outlawed corporal punishment as of 2016 (Central African Republic, Kazakhstan, Montenegro, and Sierra Leone). Rates of reported use of corporal punishment and belief in its necessity decreased over time in three countries; rates of reported use of severe corporal punishment decreased in four countries. Continuing use of corporal punishment and belief in the necessity of its use in some countries despite legal bans suggest that campaigns to promote awareness of legal bans and to educate parents regarding alternate forms of discipline are worthy of international attention and effort along with legal bans themselves.
KW - Abuse
KW - Corporal punishment
KW - Laws
KW - Spanking
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U2 - 10.1016/j.chiabu.2016.10.016
DO - 10.1016/j.chiabu.2016.10.016
M3 - Article
C2 - 28277271
AN - SCOPUS:85005943487
SN - 0145-2134
VL - 71
SP - 44
EP - 55
JO - Child Abuse and Neglect
JF - Child Abuse and Neglect
ER -