Effects of Corporal Punishment, Perceived Caretaker Warmth, and Cultural Beliefs on the Psychological Adjustment of Children in St. Kitts, West Indies

Rohner, Ronald P.; Kean, Kevin J.; Cournoyer, David E.

doi:10.2307/352743

Cited by 85 publications

(45 citation statements)

References 22 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…For example, McLoyd and Smith (2002) found that only in the context of low maternal support, but not high maternal support, spanking predicted an increase in mother-reported internalizing and externalizing problems over time for European American, African American, and Hispanic children from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. The present findings also extend Rohner’s (1986; Rohner et al, 1991) work on children’s perceptions of parental hostility as a mediator of the link between physical discipline and children’s adjustment by showing that the effects generalize to harsh verbal discipline and a cross-national context that makes possible the examination of cultural normativeness as a moderator of the mediated effect.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

“…Similarly, Rohner, Kean, and Cournoyer (1991) found in a sample of 349 9- to 16-year-old youths from St. Kitts, West Indies that parents’ use of physical discipline negatively affects children’s adjustment in part through its effect on children’s perception of being rejected by their parents. In a meta-analysis of 43 studies with 7,563 participants from around the world, children’s perceptions of their parents’ acceptance and rejection were associated with children’s psychological adjustment in virtually every group tested (Khaleque & Rohner, 2002).…”

Section: Children’s Perceptions Of Maternal Hostility As a Mediator Omentioning

confidence: 93%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Children’s perceptions of maternal hostility as a mediator of the link between discipline and children’s adjustment in four countries

Lansford

Malone

Dodge

et al. 2010

International Journal of Behavioral Development

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Using data from 195 dyads of mothers and children (age range = 8-12 years; M = 10.63) in four countries (China, India, the Philippines, and Thailand), this study examined children's perceptions of maternal hostility as a mediator of the links between physical discipline and harsh verbal discipline and children's adjustment. Both physical discipline and harsh verbal discipline had direct effects on mothers' reports of children's anxiety and aggression; three of these four links were mediated by children's perceptions of maternal hostility. In contrast, there were no significant direct effects of physical discipline and harsh verbal discipline on children's reports of their own anxiety and aggression. Instead, both physical discipline and harsh verbal discipline had indirect effects on the outcomes through children's perceptions of maternal hostility. We identified a significant interaction between perceived normativeness and use of harsh verbal discipline on children's perception of maternal hostility, but children's perception of the normativeness of physical discipline did not moderate the relation between physical discipline and perceived maternal hostility. The effects of harsh verbal discipline were more adverse when children perceived that form of discipline as being nonnormative than when children perceived that form of discipline as being normative. Results are largely consistent with a theoretical model positing that the meaning children attach to parents' discipline strategies is important in understanding associations between discipline and children's adjustment, and that cultural context is associated with children's interpretations of their parents' behavior. NIH Public Access Author ManuscriptInt J Behav Dev. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2011 September 1. Children's Perceptions of Maternal Hostility as a Mediator of the Link between Discipline and Children's Adjustment in Four CountriesA growing body of research documents cultural differences in the link between parents' use of physical discipline and children's adjustment and suggests that children's interpretations of their parents' behavior may be a key mediating factor. Deater-Deckard and Dodge (1997) proposed that the cultural normative context in which physical discipline occurs alters the meaning of discipline to the child. This principle likely applies not just to physical discipline but to other forms of harsh discipline as well. If physical punishment or other forms of discipline are administered in a context in which that form of discipline is normative or accompanied by parental warmth and a goal of helping the child grow into a responsible adult, then that caring message might be received by the child and could buffer the adverse effects of the harsh discipline on child outcomes. If a form of harsh discipline is administered in a context in which that parental behavior is less normative and more aberrant, then the message received by the child may be that the parent is out of control and hostile toward the child, which...

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

Section: Children’s Perceptions Of Maternal Hostility As a Mediator Omentioning

confidence: 93%

Children’s perceptions of maternal hostility as a mediator of the link between discipline and children’s adjustment in four countries

Lansford

Malone

Dodge

et al. 2010

International Journal of Behavioral Development

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…If children perceive spanking as a reasonable method of using parental authority, their behaviors may improve (Gunnoe & Mariner, 1997; Whaley, 2000). Indeed, the children’s perception of the punishment mediated the relationship between caregivers’ rejection and children’s psychological maladjustment (Rohner, Kean, & Cournoyer, 1991). The lack of parental support and involvement was more strongly associated with psychological maladjustment than was the use of physical punishment (Simons, Johnson, & Conger, 1994).…”

Section: Discipline and Children’s Social Competence And Behavior Promentioning

confidence: 99%

Korean Immigrant Discipline and Children's Social Competence and Behavior Problems

Kim

Guo

Koh

et al. 2010

Journal of Pediatric Nursing

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The goal of this correlational study was to explore the relationship between Korean immigrant discipline (e.g., positive, appropriate, harsh discipline) and children's social competence and behavior problems. Self-report data were collected from 58 mothers and 20 fathers of children aged from three and eight. Only paternal harsh discipline was positively correlated with children's behavior problems. Among specific discipline strategies, maternal physical affection, correcting misbehaviors, and reasoning were positively correlated with children's social competence. Paternal physical punishment (e.g., spanking, hitting, raising arms) was positively correlated with children's behavior problems. Immigrant fathers need to learn alternative ways of managing children's misbehaviors. KeywordsKorean immigrant; discipline; children; social competence; behavior problemsThe number of minority children has increased dramatically in the United States (US) during the last 30 years. National studies indicate that immigrant children tend to experience lower social competence and more behavior problems at entry into US kindergarten (Rathbun, West, & Hausken, 2004;Welston & West, 2004). These children fall further behind from 1 st to 3 rd grade (Rathbun, et al., 2004;Rouse, Brooks-Gunn, & McLanahan, 2005). Therefore, fostering social competence and preventing behavioral problems should start at an early age (Bogard & Takanishi, 2005). Children's social competence is defined as abilities that specifically enable children to achieve personal goals in social interactions while simultaneously maintaining positive relationships with others (Dirks, Treat, & Weersing, 2007;Rubin & Rose-Krasnor, 1992). Lack of social competence is manifested as behavior Publisher's Disclaimer: This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final citable form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain. (Burt, Obradovic, Long, & Masten, 2008;Dirks, et al., 2007;Rubin & Burgess, 2002). NIH Public AccessStudies found that parenting is linked to the social competence of European American children (Zhou, et al., 2002). Minority children's social competence and behavior are challenged because their family is dealing with two cultures, which have different norms (Kim, Han, & McCubbin, 2007). For example, some of the discipline strategies that were brought from Korea by recently immigrated Korean parents (e.g., spanking, lack of expression of affection) do not fit well in the social norms of the US (Kim & Hong, 2007). When parents possess different beliefs about childrearing that deviates from cultural norms of society, they may develop negative relationships with their children, which in turn impai...

show abstract

“…Rohner's (1986) parental acceptance-rejection theory posits that parenting behaviors affect a child's adjustment indirectly through the effects that they have on a child's perceptions of being rejected by his or her parents. The child's interpretation of his or her parent's behavior (that is, the meaning that a child makes of the parenting that he or she receives) depends on the cultural context (see Rohner, Kean, & Cournoyer, 1991). Within cultural contexts in which the use of physical discipline is normative, children whose parents physically discipline them may not perceive this discipline as being indicative of their parents' rejection of them, whereas children whose parents physically discipline them in a cultural context in which this behavior is not normative may perceive this experience as indicating their parents' personal rejection of them.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cultural Norms for Adult Corporal Punishment of Children and Societal Rates of Endorsement and Use of Violence

Lansford¹,

Dodge²

2008

Parenting

120

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

SYNOPSISObjective-To test the hypothesis that societal rates of corporal punishment of children predict societal levels of violence, using "culture" as the unit of analysis.Design-Data were retrieved from the Standard Cross-Cultural Sample of anthropological records, which includes 186 cultural groups, to represent the world's 200 provinces based on diversity of language, economy, political organization, descent, and historical time. Independent coders rated the frequency and harshness of corporal punishment of children, inculcation of aggression in children, warfare, interpersonal violence among adults, and demographic, socioeconomic, and parenting covariates.Results-More frequent use of corporal punishment was related to higher rates of inculcation of aggression in children, warfare, and interpersonal violence. These relations held for inculcation of aggression in children and warfare after controlling for demographic, socioeconomic, and parenting confounds.Conclusion-More frequent use of corporal punishment is related to higher prevalence of violence and endorsement of violence at a societal level. The findings are consistent with theories that adult violence becomes more prevalent in contexts in which corporal punishment is frequent, that the use of corporal punishment increases the probability that children will engage in violent behaviors during adulthood, and that violence in one social domain tends to influence behavior in other domains. If corporal punishment leads to higher levels of societal violence, then reducing parents' use of corporal punishment should lead to reductions in societal violence manifested in other ways. INTRODUCTIONThe majority of American parents discipline their children physically. Over 90% report having used corporal punishment at least once; when asked about recent use, 40% to 70% report having used corporal punishment in a more limited time period (e.g., the last week, the last 6 months; Giles-Sims, Straus, & Sugarman, 1995;Straus, 2001;Wauchope & Straus, 1990). Corporal punishment is also widely used in other countries across the world (Durrant, 1999;Levinson, 1981;Rohner, Bourque, & Elordi, 1996;Straus, 1996;Tang, 1998).Despite its prevalence in many different societies, corporal punishment remains controversial because of several concerns. First, the question of where to draw the line between physical discipline and physical abuse is ambiguous, leading some to advocate abolition of all corporal punishment. In fact, in 12 U.S. states, "excessive corporal punishment" is explicitly included in the state's definition of maltreatment, and an additional 10 states make reference to corporal , 1997). Second, many studies find that even nonabusive physical discipline has negative effects on children's development, especially in increasing externalizing behavior problems (Gershoff, 2002). More frequent corporal punishment has been found to be related to higher levels of child aggression (Eron, Huesmann, & Zelli, 1991), delinquency (Farrington & Hawkins, 1991), and criminality (McCor...

show abstract

Effects of Corporal Punishment, Perceived Caretaker Warmth, and Cultural Beliefs on the Psychological Adjustment of Children in St. Kitts, West Indies

Cited by 85 publications

References 22 publications

Children’s perceptions of maternal hostility as a mediator of the link between discipline and children’s adjustment in four countries

Children’s perceptions of maternal hostility as a mediator of the link between discipline and children’s adjustment in four countries

Korean Immigrant Discipline and Children's Social Competence and Behavior Problems

Cultural Norms for Adult Corporal Punishment of Children and Societal Rates of Endorsement and Use of Violence

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About