The use of corporal punishment in child rearing in the West Indies

The West Indian child is usually loved by its parents or caretakers, but is frequently subjected to corporal punishment unsuitable to the age and stage of its development and excessive in relation to the alleged offence. The debate on whether the persistent use of what is considered excessive punishment as the means of instilling obedience in children, centres around the parents' African heritage or learned behaviour from the institution of slavery. Socially and economically disadvantaged parents under stress seem to displace their frustrations and anxieties on the children through corporal punishment which often assumes ritualised characteristics. The community in general and the parents in particular need help through appropriate education, to change their attitudes of accepting excessive corporal punishment as the means of imposing discipline upon children.