Majority of Czech Parents Still Use Spanking as Punishment, Says New Survey

The Czech Republic is among the last few countries in the EU that does not prohibit corporal punishment for children

Katrina Modrá

Written by Katrina Modrá Published on 12.11.2018 07:13:07 (updated on 12.11.2018) Reading time: 1 minute

In 2015, the Council of Europe declared the Czech Republic in violation of the European Social Charter because the country had not fully banned corporal punishment.

Corporal punishment is defined as the disciplinary slapping or spanking of children by their parents.

A new survey conducted last month by research agency Nielsen / Admosphere suggests that Czech attitudes toward physical punishment for children haven’t changed much in recent years.

The survey found that nearly two-thirds of Czech parents get physical, spanking or slapping on the hand, when punishing kids. 

A total of 63 percent of respondents said they would use or have used physical punishment when dealing with their kids’ “misbehavior,” which, according to the survey, was most often disobeying parents or grandparents or lying.

A total of 57 percent think that parents should have the right to use physical force in their children’s upbringing; more than half of respondents said that physical punishment should be part of education.

The Czech Republic is among the last few countries in the EU that does not prohibit corporal punishment for children. 

A 2016 analysis of more than 50 years of research found that children who are spanked are more likely to defy their parents, develop mental health problems, and show antisocial behavior and aggression.

Around the world, 60 countries, states, and territories have adopted legislation that fully prohibits corporal punishment against children at home, according to UNICEF.

See a list of those countries here.

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