Violence against children by parents

The study aimed to identify the characteristics and frequency of physical and emotional violence against children by their biological parents and the relationship between children's characteristics, family factors and the extent of violent acts against children. The sample consisted of 212 grade six students in Muang District, Amnatcharoen Province. The data were collected from February 8 to 20, 1999. The results showed that 95.3 per cent of respondents perceived being treated violently by their biological parents, as 76.7 per cent were physical violence and 95.0 per cent were emotional violence. The most common physical and emotional acts of violence were beating by a cane or belt and scolding with rude language respectively. However, the violent acts occurred only occasionally. Only the factors of self-esteem and child's gender could predict the violent acts by fathers for 10.5 per cent; whereas family crises, family relations and self-esteem could predict the violent acts by mothers for 13.0 per cent. Therefore, building self-esteem, encouraging a healthy home environment, and creating proper coping skills against family crises are necessary for reducing violent acts.