U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

NCJRS Virtual Library

The Virtual Library houses over 235,000 criminal justice resources, including all known OJP works.
Click here to search the NCJRS Virtual Library

Parental Use of Physical Force in Child Discipline: A Survey of 679 College Students

NCJ Number
127052
Journal
Journal of Interpersonal Violence Volume: 5 Issue: 4 Dated: (December 1990) Pages: 449-463
Author(s)
A M Graziano; K A Namaste
Date Published
1990
Length
15 pages
Annotation
This survey took responses from 679 college freshmen about their past personal experiences in having been spanked by their parents.
Abstract
The information concurred with that obtained from surveys of parents which revealed that physical punishment is commonly used, with 93.2 percent reporting having been spanked as children. They also indicated as acceptance of the use of spanking and the intention of carrying on the tradition with their own future children. Those who had not been spanked were significantly less accepting of the practice. Other issues discussed are the ages at which spankings occurred, their severity, injuries, anger of parents and resentment of children, and the importance of studying common or "subabusive" violence against children. Spankings were most severe from ages 7 to 9, with 91.5 percent saying they felt pain and 10.6 percent who reported punishment severe enough to cause welts or bruises. Most respondents (90.7 percent) remembered not controlled discipline, but angry, uncontrolled actions; 67.3 percent now feel no resentment. 3 tables and 25 references (Author abstract modified)

Downloads

No download available

Availability