The use of physical punishment on children in Saudi Arabia. Perceptions and experiences of parents and young people

Abstract

Violence against children is a worldwide phenomenon. The use of physical punishment on children is a type of this violence. However, there is a significant lack of research on this social problem in Saudi Arabia. This study attempted to investigate parental physical punishment in Saudi Arabia. The study sample consisted of two groups of people, parents and young people. 530 persons who live in Riyadh city (285 parents and 245 young people) took part. Two questionnaires (one for each group of participants) were developed for this study purposes and SPSS was used to analysis the data. Parental use of physical punishment was common among the study sample members. Boys were more likely than girls, to have been physically punished. Similarly, young children were exposed to physical punishment more than older children. Frequency of use of physical punishment also varied according to parental age. No difference was found between fathers and mothers in regards to gender, education, and employment status but parents with childhood experience of physical punishment used physical punishment more than parents without such childhood experiences. The majority of participants supported parental use of physical punishment on children. Moreover, the majority of parents disagreed with preventing parents from using physical punishment by law. In contrast, the majority of the young people agreed with the prevention of parental use of physical punishment by law. Findings are discussed in light of the ecological model and an analysis is offered of the utility of this model in explaining the trends outlined.