What does psychological research reveal about the link between having been subjected to corporal punishment in childhood

Psychological research reveals a consistent link: having been subjected to corporal punishment (spanking or physical discipline) as a child is associated with later approval and support for using the same punishment on children. This shows up across studies measuring personal attitudes, parent‑child belief patterns, and large‑scale meta‑analyses.

• A scoping review of 18 studies found that in 7 of them, individuals who experienced corporal punishment in childhood were more likely to approve of its use [1].
• A meta‑analysis confirmed that a history of spanking in childhood was significantly linked to holding positive attitudes about spanking in adulthood [7].
• Adolescents who had been spanked by their mothers were more accepting of spanking than other adolescents [3].
• Spanking beliefs are transmitted from parents to children. One study showed a significant correlation (intraclass correlation = 0.38) between adolescents’ and parents’ views on spanking [4], and research suggests that such beliefs are passed across generations [5].
• The intergenerational transmission of corporal punishment is strong, and parents’ attitudes toward corporal punishment play a role in this process [2].
• Parents who experienced corporal punishment are more likely to use it on their own kids. For instance, a study reported that 74% of parents used corporal punishment, and 82% of those had themselves experienced it in childhood [6]. Another analysis noted that adults who were spanked as children were more likely to support physical punishment for their own children [8].

Taken together, the evidence indicates that growing up with spanking makes a person more inclined to see it as acceptable, and that mindset easily gets passed down to the next generation [1][6][8].