Negative consequences of corporal punishment of children are unequivocal

Abstract

Multiple avenues of clinical research demonstrate that dating violence has negative consequences. The causes of dating violence likely are multifactorial. Use of corporal punishment of children by parents seeking to correct or control behavior is commonly practiced. Temple et al, in this volume of The Journal, note that existing literature associates corporal punishment of children with negative childhood outcomes (eg, increased aggression), but is confounded by inclusion of multiple types of maltreatment, including physical abuse of children. They sought to obtain more granular data about consequences of corporal punishment alone. In this study they sought to assess whether corporal punishment in childhood was associated with dating violence in adolescence. The study population derived from 1042 students recruited at grades 9-10 from 7 urban and suburban public high schools in southeast Texas. The students were followed longitudinally, annually, to study adolescent risky behaviors. The current study was a cross-sectional analysis that included 758 participants who completed the follow up 5 years later (Wave 6), the first study Wave in which questions about prior corporal punishment were included. A significant positive association between corporal punishment and perpetration of dating violence was found, with an odds ratio of 1.3 (95% CI, 1.07 and 1.59). In multivariate analysis controlling for broad potentially confounding variables, corporal punishment remained a significant predictor of perpetration of dating violence. Another noteworthy finding in the study, consistent with existing studies, was that females were more likely than male counterparts to perpetrate teen dating violence. The authors posit that although society can continue to argue about the use of corporal punishment, its negative consequences are unequivocal, and outweigh any possible benefits. Article page 233 ▶ Childhood Corporal Punishment and Future Perpetration of Physical Dating ViolenceThe Journal of PediatricsVol. 194PreviewTo test whether experiencing childhood corporal punishment is linked to later perpetration of dating violence. Full-Text PDF