Nigerian parents beat us to “discipline” us: what did we learn?

why do nigerian parents use corporal punishment as discipline? in this video essay, i explore what many of us were taught growing up about respect & obedience—from my own childhood experience, as well as research on Nigerian culture, respect, religion and parenting, i ask “what did we actually learn from these beatings?” i’d love to hear your thoughts and experiences in the comments too ♡ #nigerianparents #corporalpunishment #videoessay #africanparents #commentary #nigeria 🏷️ chapters: 00:00 - intro 00:48 - art started the conversation 01:41 - my childhood had a before & after 02:55 - respect vs obedience 04:38 - where is the line? 06:09 - did the beatings work? 08:06 - “spare the rod, spoil the child” 09:03 - children become adults 10:35 - “our parents were beaten too” 12:40 - what does “i turned out fine” mean.. 14:01 - and yet, we laugh 14:55 - so.. what did we actually learn? 15:46 - what do we do instead? 16:42 - final thoughts 🎨 original artwork credit: Cynthia Ugwudike, “and she saw me bleeding”: https://x.com/cynugwudike/status/2076... 📚references & sources: 1. Afifi, T.O., Ford, D., Gershoff, E.T., Merrick, M., Grogan-Kaylor, A., Ports, K.A., MacMillan, H.L., Holden, G.W., Taylor, C.A., Lee, S.J. and Peters Bennett, R. (2017) ‘Spanking and adult mental health impairment: The case for the designation of spanking as an adverse childhood experience’, Child Abuse & Neglect, 71, pp. 24–31. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2017... 2 Cuartas, J. (2021) ‘Corporal punishment and early childhood development in 49 low- and middle-income countries’, Child Abuse & Neglect, 120, 105205. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2021... 3. Cuartas, J., Weissman, D.G., Sheridan, M.A., Lengua, L. and McLaughlin, K.A. (2021) ‘Corporal punishment and elevated neural response to threat in children’, Child Development, 92(3), pp. 821–832. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13565 4. Gershoff, E.T. and Grogan-Kaylor, A. (2016) ‘Spanking and child outcomes: Old controversies and new meta-analyses’, Journal of Family Psychology, 30(4), pp. 453–469. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1037/fam0000191 5. Heilmann, A., Mehay, A., Watt, R.G., Kelly, Y., Durrant, J.E., van Turnhout, J. and Gershoff, E.T. (2021) ‘Physical punishment and child outcomes: A narrative review of prospective studies’, The Lancet, 398(10297), pp. 355–364. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(21... 6. National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) (2022) Nigeria: 2021 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) and National Immunization Coverage Survey (NICS): Survey Findings Report. Abuja: NBS and UNICEF. Available at: https://www.unicef.org/nigeria/media/... 7. Ofoha, D. and Ogidan, R. (2020) ‘Punitive violence against children: A psychoeducational parenting program to reduce harsh disciplining practices and child beating in the home’, International Journal of Psychological Research, 13(2), pp. 89–98. Available at: https://doi.org/10.21500/20112084.4604 8. Olanipekun, O.V. (2017) ‘Omoluabi: Re-thinking the concept of virtue in Yoruba culture and moral system’, Africology: The Journal of Pan African Studies, 10(9), pp. 217–231. Available at: https://www.jpanafrican.org/docs/vol1... 9. United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (2007) General Comment No. 8 (2006): The Right of the Child to Protection from Corporal Punishment and Other Cruel or Degrading Forms of Punishment. CRC/C/GC/8. Geneva: United Nations. Available at: https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/... 10. United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) (2014) Hidden in Plain Sight: A Statistical Analysis of Violence Against Children. New York: UNICEF. Available at: https://data.unicef.org/resources/hid... 11. World Health Organization (WHO) (2016) INSPIRE: Seven Strategies for Ending Violence Against Children. Geneva: World Health Organization. Available at: https://iris.who.int/bitstream/handle... 12. World Health Organization (WHO) (2025) Corporal Punishment of Children: The Public Health Impact. Geneva: World Health Organization. Available at: https://www.who.int/publications/i/it...