Disciplinary history, adult disciplinary attitudes, and risk for abusive parenting

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

In an attempt to identify factors that could contribute to intergenerational physical abuse, the specific childhood disciplinary experiences of adolescents and young adults were assessed, and these childhood experiences were related to the subjects' assessment as to whether specific disciplinary tactics were abusive or appropriate in child rearing. Consistent with previous research, few maltreated persons viewed their own experiences as abusive. Moreover, personal experience with a disciplinary event was associated with a decreased tendency to view that particular form of discipline as inappropriate. Finally, a history of severe physical punishment, failure to acknowledge an abusive history when it had occurred, and adult attitudes regarding physical discipline were associated with selecting more punitive disciplinary strategies when individuals were faced with child misbehavior in an analog parenting task.