The older you are, the more likely you have been physically disciplined when you were a child. And not just by your parents! In fact, corporal punishment in schools is still permissible in many states. But with today’s heightened sensitivity to child abuse, parents may be reluctant to use corporal punishment to discipline their children.

When parents are separated and at odds with one another, each trying to point to the parenting weaknesses of the other and each competing for more time with their children, these parents are likely to be even more constrained in their use of corporal punishment. Children themselves are very much aware of the sensitivity to child abuse and they may even go so far as to report their parents’ use of corporal punishment on them.