Mum trying to discipline her young child.A Singapore study shows an association between maternal physical discipline and children’s externalizing problems, such as aggressive, delinquent, or hyperactive behaviours.
“[Our findings suggest] that children who experienced more physical discipline than their peers were more likely to show greater externalizing problems,” the researchers said.
Using the random-intercept cross-lagged panel model, at the between-person level, maternal use of physical discipline covaried positively with more externalizing problems in children after accounting for the child’s biological sex, mother’s education level, ethnicity, age, and household income (β=0.57; p<0.001).
At the within-person level, more maternal physical discipline at age 4.5 years predicted fewer externalizing problems in children at age 7 years (β=−0.25; p=0.01). [Fam Process 2026;65:e70113]
Unlike other countries where the use of physical discipline has waned, Singapore has no ban on physical discipline. [Public Health 2023;222:60-65; JAMA Pediatrics 2021;175:92-94; https://endcorporalpunishment.org/global-initiative, accessed April 14, 2026] Many young adults in Singapore did not support a ban on its use despite the negative childhood experiences associated with it, reflecting the deeply ingrained cultural acceptance of physical disciplinary measures. [Acta Psychologica 2025;257:105071]
In a recent study, 94 percent of Singaporean mothers reported using some form of physical discipline (eg, spanking, slapping) at least once when the child was 4.5 years old, and over 80 percent of mums still reported using physical discipline when the child was 11 years old. [Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health 2023;17:81]
Authoritarian practices may not always result in negative outcomes in Singaporean children. [Infant and Child Development 2022;31:e2312] In some Asian cultures (eg, Chinese), harsh parenting is sometimes interpreted as care and concern. [https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2002-02522-004, accessed April 14, 2026]
Caning has long been considered an acceptable punishment. [Child Abuse Negl 1997;21:445-464] Through the years, however, the public perception towards caning differed: some still accepted it; others called it ‘abuse’. [Children Youth Serv Rev 2019;98:261-268]
To explore the implications of physical discipline within its cultural normativeness and enhance understanding of how the cultural landscape shapes the impact of parenting, the researchers used data from 604 mums (mean age 30.68 years at recruitment) from the Growing Up in Singapore Toward healthy Outcomes cohort who had completed questionnaires on child physical discipline (at 4.5, 8.5, and 10.5 years old) or behavioural problems (at 4, 7, and 10.5 years old) for at least one timepoint.
“We focused on maternal physical discipline because mums are typically the primary caregivers in Singapore,” they said.
“Our findings indicate that cultural acceptance and the developmental normativeness of physical discipline converge during earlier developmental phases, yielding temporary behavioural suppression,” the investigators said. “[However,] caution is needed in generalizing this finding in light of the ecological setting, given that the normative context of harsh discipline may have shaped these results.”
According to the investigators, this study is among the few to explore reciprocal associations between physical discipline and children’s externalizing problems in an Asian context, where harsh parenting is relatively normative.
For parents, the temporary behavioural suppression after physical discipline in children may imply its efficacy, thus encouraging its use. However, older children in Singapore associated childhood physical discipline with emotional and physical harm. [Acta Psychologica 2025;257:105071]
“[Therefore,] our findings should not be interpreted as advocating for physical discipline,” the researchers highlighted. “More rigorous, evolving approaches and evidence from diverse sociocultural contexts would help refine our understanding of its role in child development.”