Citation

Ferguson CJ. Psychiatr. Q. 2020; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Affiliation

Department of Psychology, Stetson University, 421 N. Woodland Blvd., DeLand, FL, 32729, USA. CJFerguson1111@aol.com.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/s11126-020-09742-5

PMID

32291560

Abstract

The issue of whether spanking does or does not contribute to later aggression remains controversial despite public policy statements by the American Academy of Pediatrics and other groups opposing spanking. Studies have remained inconsistent regarding whether spanking does or does not contribute to later aggression. One study, Temple et al., 2018, released results from an adult retrospective study suggesting that spanking and related corporal punishment could predict adult dating violence, but that actual physical child abuse exposure did not. This current study attempted to replicate this unusual finding using similar methodologies. Current results did not replicate the findings of Temple et al., 2018. Exposure to child physical abuse predicted adult dating violence, but exposure to spanking and related corporal punishment did not. These results suggest it may be premature to link spanking to aggression in adulthood.

Language: en

Keywords

Aggression; Child abuse; Corporal punishment; Dating violence; Spanking