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

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.