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Violent Child Discipline in the Family: Findings from Vietnam Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys

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Abstract

This paper presents the findings from an in-depth analysis of violent child discipline in the family in Vietnam. The analysis was conducted using data from the Vietnam Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) 2006, 2011 and 2014. The analysis was disaggregated by child’s age, sex, mother’s education, wealth, ethnicity, residence (urban, rural) and geographic areas; bivariate and multivariate analyses were conducted. Data from the 2014 MICS show that two in three children aged 1–14 have experienced some form of violent discipline. Significantly, physical punishment is a widespread practice (42.7% of families). Boys were slightly more likely to be subjected to violent disciplinary practices than girls. The prevalence of violent discipline fluctuated, peaking at children aged 5–9 years, and then falling among children aged 10–14 years. Children were four times more likely to experience violent punishment if their mothers/primary caregivers considered physical punishment necessary. However, even among children whose mothers/primary caregivers did not endorse violent punishment, a large proportion of children were still subjected to it. The data also show that violent child discipline decreased significantly over time, albeit with variations in the reduction of forms of violent discipline. While high levels of reduction in psychological aggression against children were observed from 2006 to 2011, the reduction was attributed to physical punishment during the period 2011–2014. Recommendations to reduce violent child discipline include the role of government agencies, social organization and the wider community, as well as the immediate family.

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Notes

  1. The research was conducted in 2016–2017 with the quantitative sample size of 340 pairs of mothers/fathers and children aged 10–17.

  2. Although a mother was not necessarily the person who disciplined children, we hypothesized that a mother with higher education will have better ability to choose an appropriate method of education and protection. As a result, we chose mother’s education as an independent variable.

  3. 01 USD equivalent to about 21,300VND as of 30/6/2014.

  4. Children under 16 years old for whom 2 or more of the 7 dimensions above are not met will be considered multidimensional poverty children.

  5. It is noted that in MICS 2006 and MICS 2011 children aged 2–14 years were analyzed, while in 2014 children’s ages were 1–14 years.

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Acknowledgements

This work was originally funded by the UNICEF Office in Vietnam , with Contract number 43181423, the first author was the PI of the project. Authors would like to thank the UNICEF Office and staff for their active supports. We are also grateful for all the reviewers’ valuable suggestions for original reports and for this paper.

All authors certify that they have no affiliations with or involvement in any organization or entity with any financial interest or non-financial interest in the subject matter or materials discussed in this manuscript.

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  1. Institute for Family and Gender Studies (IFGS), Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences (VASS), 27 Tran Xuan Soan, Ha Noi, Vietnam

    Nguyen Huu Minh, Tran Thi Hong, Tran Quy Long & Nguyen Ha Dong

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  1. Nguyen Huu Minh
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Correspondence to Nguyen Huu Minh.

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Minh, N.H., Hong, T.T., Long, T.Q. et al. Violent Child Discipline in the Family: Findings from Vietnam Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys. Child Ind Res 14, 2371–2392 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12187-021-09847-8

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