Corporal punishment of children leaves deeper marks on mental health than physical health. There are various alternative ways to discipline children besides hitting.

The Effects of Corporal Punishment on Children

Corporal punishment of children is still surprisingly common in our country and has led to immense suffering and dysfunction in the adults we are raising.

The Effects Of Corporal Punishment On Children

Overview

Despite ubiquitous discussion in pop-psychology regarding the negative impact corporal punishment has on kids, we have not seen it completely eradicated or even minimised. Interestingly enough, in 2021, the &lsquo;Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) Prohibition of Corporal Punishment Bill&rsquo; was passed which banned all kinds of violence against children. This has not been replicated in other cities or provinces. If we look at the entire world, only 63 countries altogether prohibit the use of corporal punishment on children.&nbsp; 
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Understanding of Corporal Punishment

It is the act of inflicting bodily harm or physical pain upon an individual mostly as an attempt to discipline. Methods such as spanking, flogging, beating etc. are employed in order to achieve this goal. Children of all social strata and genders undergo this heinous practice.&nbsp; 
The dynamic of caregivers and children allows gross implementation of such harmful disciplinary tactics. Children can&rsquo;t shield themselves from physical abuse, nor are they allowed to complain as that usually just exacerbates the issue. They also lack an understanding of the situation being foul and those who complain are reminded of the responsibilities of their parents, caregivers and educators.&nbsp; 
 
In our society it&rsquo;s considered a right that these individuals get to exercise over a child in order to make them a productive part of civilisation. There are instances where parents would go as far as to allow any elder to discipline their child by these methods. Hence, we have seen that schools, madrassas, and essentially anywhere children are being supervised by adults will have this practice being generously employed.&nbsp; 
The reasons for these could be misbehavior, use of foul language, bad grades but most commonly it simply depends on the mood of the adult in charge. Much of the older generation even recalls these instances fondly and consider it a necessary part of a child&rsquo;s upbringing. &lsquo;Flying chappal&rsquo; jokes are common on local social media and even some of the younger lot believes in the efficacy of this harmful tradition. However, we do see a shifting trend where many parents are opting for healthier methods of disciplining their children. 
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The proponents of corporal punishment believe that a perpetual threat of violence helps set clear boundaries with children while instilling self-control and accountability at a very young age.&nbsp; 
A lot of research has been done on this however and we have observed that in most cases, any positive change driven by this practice doesn&rsquo;t last long and most children revert back to the behavior they were punished for once the threat of violence is removed.&nbsp; 
It also leads to a vicious cycle or the child misbehaving even more after the physically violent event takes place. What&rsquo;s worse is that they also might end up becoming perpetrators of violence with their younger siblings or weaker peers. It has a whole plethora of negative effects that are much worse than any initial behavior that drives this punishment. 
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Then following long-term and short-term effects of corporal punishment have been noted on children:&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>It doesn&rsquo;t really stop the behavior it&rsquo;s used against and might in time even worsen it.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>In many cases, children are left with scars on their bodies. This is especially true for children younger than 18 months of age.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>The very real threat of lifelong physical debilitation due to the threat of escalation. Such cases have been documented at educational institutions and sometimes even resulted in the child losing their life.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>The <a href="https://merisehat.pk/article/Mental%20Health">mental health of these children</a> suffers greatly as a result and they are prone to anti-social behavior.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>These kids usually stop communicating their needs and feelings due to the ever-looming threat of violence.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Their cognitive development suffers and as a result there are poor educational outcomes.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Many children become aggressive as a result of this and will in turn become bullies and aggressors.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>There is inherent shame attached with the whole experience and the child will fail to develop healthy social and emotional bonds with their peers due to never being able to open up about it.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>These children will become adults with a poor self-image and negative self-talk.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Physical abuse is often accompanied by verbal abuse which these kids end up internalising. 
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</ul>

Bottom Line

These are just some of the ways corporal punishment debilitates children and ruins their future prospects. In most cases there is no acknowledgment of the harm that was done to them. When there is a realization on the part of the individual, it requires years of therapy to finally be able to move past it. There&rsquo;s a global conversation happening around this phenomenon and there is widespread consensus that we must find better ways to raise our kids.&nbsp;

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