BRAZILBRAZILA report comparing diagnosis and treatment of attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD) in different countries found that in Brazil, physical punishment is considered by a large number of teachers to be a “therapeutic” treatment for ADHD.
(Reported in Psychiatric News, vol. 46, no. 11, June 3, 2011)
A large scale comparative study (World Studies of Abuse in the Family Environment (WorldSAFE)) which involved surveys with over 14,000 mothers of children aged under 18, carried out between 1998 and 2003, examined parental discipline in Brazil, Chile, Egypt, India, Philippines, and the United States. In Brazil, 70% of children experienced “moderate” physical discipline (including being “spanked” on the buttocks, hit with an object, slapped on the face and having hot pepper put in their mouth). Two per cent of children experienced harsh physical discipline (including being burnt, beaten up, kicked and smothered). Nearly four children in ten (39%) experienced harsh psychological discipline such as being called names, being cursed and being threatened with abandonment. “Moderate” psychological discipline, including being yelled or screamed at or being refused food was experienced by 77% of children. Non-violent discipline, including explaining why a behaviour was wrong and telling a child to stop, was also widely used (experienced by 96% of children). The study found that rates of harsh physical discipline were dramatically higher in all communities than published rates of official physical abuse in any country, and that rates of physical punishment can vary widely among communities within the same country.
(Runyan, D. et al, 2010, “International Variations in Harsh Child Discipline”, Pediatrics, published online 2 August 2010, www.pediatrics.org)
A study on the relationship between severe physical punishment and mental health problems found that 20% of the children (aged 6-17) in the 813 participating households had suffered severe physical punishment (being hit with an object, being kicked, choked, smothered, burnt, scalded, branded, beaten or threatened with a weapon) by one or both parents in the last 12 months.
(Bordin, I. A. et al, 2009, “Severe physical punishment: risk of mental health problems for poor urban children in Brazil”, Bulletin of the World Health Organisation, May 2009, vol. 87(5), pp. 336–344)
Surveys carried out in 2002-2004 examined the attitudes of children and adults in Argentina, Brazil, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Peru and Venezuela towards physical punishment. In Brazil, 800 people were surveyed (200 adults and 600 children). Nearly a quarter (23.2%) of the children agreed that physical punishment is “very bad” or “makes children violent”, and 37.2% agreed that physical punishment is “unfair”. Three-quarters of children and adults thought that physical punishment is never necessary.
(Save the Children Sweden & Instituto de Encuestas y Sondeos de Opinión, 2005, Sistematización de las Encuestas Sobre la Perceptión del Castigo Físico en Seis Países de America Latina, presentation: Managua, 16 May 2005)
Research in five juvenile detention centres in the State of Rio de Janeiro found that beatings, and impunity for offenders, were common. Verbal violence was also common, and youths experienced lengthy periods of lock-up and being forced to stand for long periods of time in uncomfortable positions.
(Human Rights Watch, 2004, “Real dungeons”: Juvenile Detention in the State of Rio de Janeiro, vol.16, no.7)
Research by Human Rights Watch in 17 detention centres in Northern Brazil, including four girls and including interviews with 44 detained young people, found that children are routinely beaten by police. Beatings both during and after arrest were found to be common. Children complaining of beatings reported that military police hit them with rubber batons with a metal core.
(Human Rights Watch, 2003, Cruel Confinement: Abuses against detained children in Northern Brazil)
In 1999, research by the Child Studies Laboratory (LACRI), University of Sao Paulo, into the experiences of 894 boys and girls aged 7-15 at schools in Sao Paulo found a high prevalence of corporal punishment in the home. Among those aged 7-9 years, the most frequent forms of punishment were smacking, spanking and ear/hair pulling (41.51%, 41.92% and 36.79% respectively for boys; 32.76%, 24.14% and 27.59% for girls). Of those aged 10-12 years, between a quarter and just over a half of those who reported having received corporal punishment were still being beaten, and among those aged 13-15 who experienced corporal punishment, there was no form of punishment that had not been experienced by at least one child. Punishment is administered by both mothers and fathers, but particularly the mother the younger the child. Children aged 7-9 reported feeling predominantly pain and sadness when they were beaten; those aged 10-12 mainly pain and rage; those aged 13-15 mainly rage.
(Azevedo, M. A. & de Azevedo Guerra, V. N., 2001, Hitting Mania: Domestic corporal punishment of children and adolescents in Brazil, Sao Paulo: IGLU Editora
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