Predicting Spanking of Younger and Older Children by Mothers and Fathers

• Published in: Journal of marriage and family Vol. 60; no. 1; pp. 79 - 94
• Main Authors: Day, Randal D., Peterson, Gary W., McCracken, Coleen
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Malden National Council on Family Relations 01.02.1998; Blackwell; Blackwell Publishing Ltd
• Subjects: Age Differences; Antisocial Behavior; Child Abuse; Child discipline; Child Rearing; Child. Socialization; Childhood mental disorders; Childrearing Practices; Children; Children & youth; College Students; Communities; Corporal Punishment; Delinquency; Developmental Tasks; Discipline; Family; Family Life; Family Structure; Fathers; Individual Differences; Interpersonal Competence; Longitudinal Studies; Marriage; Mothers; Multiple Regression Analysis; National Surveys; Parent Child Relationship; Parent-child relations; Parenthood; Parenting; Parenting and Parent-Child Relations; Parenting Skills; Parents; Parents & parenting; Poverty; Predictor Variables; Punishment; Racial Differences; Researchers; Sex Differences; Single status; Sociology; Sociology of the family. Age groups; State Schools; State Surveys; State Universities; United States of America; Parent; Educational attitude; Modeling; Parent-Child Relationship; Socio-Economic Factor; Age-grade; Education; Parental Role; Ideology; Strategy; Wee Child; Discipline; Child
• ISSN: 0022-2445; 1741-3737
• DOI: 10.2307/353443

We examine parents' characteristics that influence the incidence of spanking as a discipline strategy in younger and older children. Data were analyzed from the National Survey of Families and Households. We found that different combinations of blocks of predictor variables influenced spanking in eight subsamples. Belsky's model of competent parenting was employed to explain differences in spanking as a discipline strategy. Subsample profiles of spanking suggest that a variety of interventions are needed to decrease this frequently used parenting strategy.