A new research from University College London has revealed that harsh parenting, like smacking kids, could have long-lasting (bad) consequences on their mental health and behavior. The justification of smacking is an old debate in education, and Scotland was the first UK nation, last year, to ban this kind of practice.
The removal of the "justifiable assault" (about physical punishment) notion from the law means that kids now benefit from the same protection as adults. And experts say that other nations should follow this (good) example.
According to Dr. Rebecca Lacey, co-author of the University College London research, “Scotland has already made that change and Wales is coming, and it would just be great if England could follow suit as well. There are more, softer ways of dealing with problem behaviors."
"The more adversities a child has experienced by the age of three, the worse their mental health is by that point – but those differences persist over time, so right across early life at least to age 14,” added Dr. Lacey.
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