Physical punishment harms children and affects brain development

How does corporal punishment affect children??

Parenting is an exhausting and complicated topic for all parents. Researchers now looked at how physical punishment affects children's behavior. The physicians found that corporal punishment can harm the child and even affect the normal development of the brain.

The scientists at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) found in their current research that physical punishment in children leads to aggression and other negative effects. The experts publish their call for a ban on corporal punishment in an updated policy statement called "Effective Discipline to Rise Healthy Children" in the English-language journal "Pediatrics".

Children who are at the mercy of violent parents at home often develop aggressive behavior themselves. (Image: highwaystarz / fotolia.com)

Physical punishment affects brain development

In the long term, physical punishment will cause aggression among affected children and will not help them learn responsibility and self-control. The new evidence even suggests that this form of punishment affects normal brain development. Other methods of education are safer and more effective if children are to learn how to differentiate correctly, the doctors say. The experts also dealt with the damage associated with verbal punishment (shame or humiliation). The AAP supports educating parents about effective disciplinary strategies that are designed to provide appropriate behavior and protect the child and others from harm.

Beating does not improve the child's behavior in the long run

Today, significantly fewer parents support the use of corporal punishment than was the case in the past, say the scientists. "However, physical punishment remains legal in many countries, although there are indications that children are being injured - not only physically and mentally, but also in terms of performance at school and interaction with other children," explains study author Dr. Robert D. Sege in a press release from the American Academy of Pediatrics. Physical punishment and severe verbal abuse can cause a child to become anxious in the short term. This does not improve the child's long-term behavior, but aggravates it.

Corporal punishment made children more aggressive

The study found that children over the age of three who were physically abused more than twice a month were much more aggressive at the age of five. At the age of nine, these children still displayed negative behavior and lower values ​​for a recommended vocabulary. Research has shown that the hitting, shouting and shaming of a child can increase the stress hormones and can lead to changes in the architecture of the brain. Hard verbal attacks are also associated with mental health problems in children and adolescents.

Reward positive behavior of children

The study's researchers wanted to help families develop more effective measures that help parents maintain calm and controlled behavior. Parents should also reward their children's positive behavior rather than resort to punishment. Also, rules and expectations can be established in advance, but the key is that they are consistently enforced.

Positive role models and clear boundaries are important for children

The AAP recommends that pediatricians should use their influence to help parents with age-appropriate strategies for disciplining their child. The policy statement also includes educational offerings in which physicians and parents can learn healthy forms of discipline. Of course, the AAP also opposes physical punishment in schools. The researchers have already addressed this problem in a separate policy statement from 2000. Corporal punishment leads to no advantages and it is known that children grow up carefree with positive role models and clear boundaries and also develop better, according to the study authors. (As)