Perspectives of Children on Corporal Punishment in Domestic Settings in Ghana

ABSTRACT Despite substantial efforts to eliminate corporal punishment in schools, homes and other child‐related settings in Ghana, the practice persists. There have been varied views over whether to keep, alter or remove the subject of corporal punishment from Ghana's legislation, which is currently inadequate in prohibiting its application. In addition, children's perspectives on this national discussion have been sparse. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the incidence of corporal punishment among children, types of corporal punishment experienced by children, children's perspectives on the underlying causes of corporal punishment and their opinions on the use of corporal punishment at home. Corporal punishment was considered a standard practice in most homes, and the common corporal punishment methods were caning and whipping. Five themes emerged as the causes of the use of corporal punishment at home: children stealing, children not doing their household chores, children spending too much time on social media, children disrespecting adults and children engaging in physical altercations. Also, children had mixed opinions on the use of corporal punishment at home. The study recommends that policymakers and programme managers educate children, parents and community leaders about the harmful effects of corporal punishment.