Official websites use. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Dr. Stephanie D. Mandated child abuse reporters may judge specific disciplinary practices as unacceptable for young children, whereas child law professionals arbitrating allegations may be less inclusive.
Do the views of these groups diverge, by child age, regarding physical discipline? Because the Parent-Child Conflict Tactics Scale PC-CTS can be used to assess the epidemiology of child disciplinary behaviors and as a proxy to examine the incidence or prevalence of child abuse, the disciplinary practices described on the PC-CTS were presented as triggers for questions. Both groups reflected changes in United States norms, as non-physical approaches were the most approved. We conclude that instruments estimating the prevalence of child maltreatment by parent-report should consider modifying how specific disciplinary practices are classified.
All children require discipline because lessons regarding proper behavior need to be taught and behavior corrected. Acceptable parental disciplinary practices are culturally defined; actual parental practices vary widely across cultures Runyan et al.
Studies of the frequency of disciplinary practices and the use of harsher forms of physical or emotional discipline have been used to estimate the occurrence of child physical abuse, although harsh punishment may not meet legal definitions of abuse Runyan et al. This proxy measurement of child abuse has a significant advantage in that only the parent and the child may be present when maltreatment occurs and no report to social services or the police may follow. Ample evidence exists that parents will self-report harsh punishment of their children at rates far greater than recorded rates of physical abuse Theodore et al.
Some legally mandated reporters of child discipline, such as pediatricians, are in a position to ask about or provide guidance on child discipline. These professionals will need to make a decision about whether acts reported by parents are unacceptable and thus abusive.
