Corporal punishment use: Changes over time

We are learning about parents' use of corporal punishment, including whether risk and protective factors for spanking and hitting children have changed over past decades. This study uses data from the NIH-funded Monitoring the Future (MTF) study.

This study builds on our previous work finding that spanking has decreased substantially in the past two decades, from 50% of parents reporting spanking a child in 1993 to just 35% in 2017. 

  • Featured on CNN, "Spanking has declined in America, study finds, but pediatricians worry about impact of pandemic"
  • Featured on US News, "Spanking on the Decline in American Homes"
Mother throws hands up and shouts at daughter curled up and covering her eyes