Child disciplinary practices, abuse, and neglect: Findings from a formative study in Chitungwiza, Zimbabwe
Shilpa N Patel1, Indhu Shanmugam1, Christopher Obong'o2
1Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Center for Global Health, Division of Global HIV and Tuberculosis, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Insights
Parents and children in Zimbabwe have unclear definitions of discipline versus abuse, with physical discipline being common. Understanding these nuances is key for developing effective parenting interventions to protect vulnerable children.
Area of Science:
- Child development and welfare
- Public health interventions
- Sociology of family
Background:
- Zimbabwe faces a high prevalence of child abuse.
- Understanding community perceptions of child discipline, abuse, and neglect is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore how parents/caregivers and children in Chitungwiza, Zimbabwe, describe child discipline, abuse, and neglect.
- To identify factors influencing these practices.
- To inform the adaptation of a positive parenting/caregiving intervention.
Main Methods:
- Eight focus groups were conducted: four with parents/caregivers (N=40) and four with children aged 10-14 (N=40).
- Data were collected in Chitungwiza, Zimbabwe.
- Focus group transcripts were analyzed using an inductive and deductive approach with MAXQDA 12 software.
Main Results:
- Parents/caregivers and children showed some awareness but lacked clear definitions and boundaries between discipline and abuse.
- Physical discipline was a recurring theme reported by both groups.
- Factors influencing discipline/abuse included child's gender and misbehavior severity; orphans/non-biological children were identified as particularly vulnerable to abuse and neglect.
Conclusions:
- A clear understanding of discipline, abuse, and neglect, along with influencing factors, is essential for assessing child vulnerability.
- This understanding is critical for developing and refining context-specific parenting and caregiving interventions in Zimbabwe.
Background:
Zimbabwe has a high prevalence of children who have experienced abuse according to national data.
Objective:
To understand how parents/caregivers and children describe child discipline, abuse, and neglect and what factors influence each, in order to inform the adaptation of a positive parenting/caregiving intervention in Chitungwiza, Zimbabwe.
Participants:
A total of eight focus groups were conducted, four with parents/caregivers (N = 40) and four with their children ages 10-14 (N = 40), separately, between June-July 2016.
Setting:
Chitungwiza, Zimbabwe.
Methods:
We used an inductive and deductive analytic approach to analyze focus group transcripts, using MAXQDA 12.
Results:
There were similar themes across focus groups of children and parents/caregivers. Findings suggest that parents/caregivers and children may be somewhat aware of the differences between discipline and abuse, but they are not completely clear about what the definitions of discipline and abuse are, and where the boundaries between discipline and abuse lie. The use of both non-physical and physical forms of discipline were described in the community, however physical discipline was a reoccurring theme in the focus groups of both parents/caregivers and their children. There were several factors that influenced discipline and/or abuse of children in the community, including the child's gender and theseverity of the child's misbehavior/actions. Parents/caregivers shared that orphan/non-biological children were particularly vulnerable to forms of abuse and neglect committed by parents/caregivers in the community, for example, withholding food and overworking a child.
Conclusions:
Understanding the differences between discipline, abuse and neglect, as well as factors that influence occurrences of abuse/neglect and/or severity of abuse/neglect, need to be considered when assessing the vulnerability of children, in order to develop and refine parenting/caregiving interventions for the Zimbabwean context.
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