Although corporal punishment is no longer a common practice, recent research performed in two private schools in Africa shows that it could in fact compromise a child’s overall cognitive abilities.
Of 63 demographically-similar, kindergarten-age children, those enrolled in a school employing the use of a stick, slapping or pinching, performed conspicuously worse in psychological processes – such as abstract thinking, planning and delaying gratification – than their counterparts in a school applying milder disciplinary practices.
"This study demonstrates that corporal punishment does not teach children how to behave or improve their learning," said researcher Victoria Talwar, Ph.D., of McGill University.
While these findings support other studies that suggest punitive discipline may make children compliant in the short term – it is likely they will internalize their punishment and hinder their ability for self-control as they age.
Talwar continued: "In the short term, it may not have any negative effects; but if relied upon over time, it does not support children’s problem-solving skills, or their abilities to inhibit inappropriate behavior or to learn."
Study author Kang Lee, Ph.D. admits that these findings – published in the journal Social Development – beg further questions that researchers are now looking to answer.
"We are now examining whether being in a punitive environment day in and day out will have other negative impacts on children such as lying or other covert antisocial behaviors. Also, we are pursuing the long-term consequences of experiencing corporal punishment. For example, what would children’s cognitive and social development be 5 or 10 years down the road?"
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