Peer-reviewed article
Child discipline practices and their relationship with suspected developmental delay and aggressive behavior in early childhood: a population-based cross-sectional study in Lao PDR.
Nagata A, Rahman MS, Takemoto A, Akter L, Xaypadith S et al. ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study examined how different child discipline practices relate to developmental delay and aggressive behavior in young children in Laos. Using data from 5,007 children aged 2-5 years, researchers found that non-violent discipline was associated with lower rates of suspected developmental delay, while physical punishment was linked to both higher developmental delay and more aggressive behavior. The findings suggest that promoting non-violent caregiving approaches could support better developmental outcomes in young children.
Key points
- 56.3% of children aged 24-59 months in Lao PDR had suspected developmental delay
- Non-violent discipline was associated with 18% lower prevalence of suspected developmental delay
- Physical punishment was associated with 7% higher prevalence of developmental delay and 2.15 times higher odds of elevated aggressive behavior
- Psychological punishment showed protective association with developmental delay only when combined with non-violent discipline
- Study was based on nationally representative data from the 2023 Lao Social Indicator Survey
Limitations
As a cross-sectional study, this research cannot establish causality between discipline practices and developmental outcomes; the direction of association remains unclear and unmeasured confounding variables may influence the results.
Abstract
Background Early childhood offers a foundational window for developmental progress, yet many children in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) face risks of developmental delay (DD) due to inadequate or harsh caregiving environments. This study investigates the associations between child discipline practices (CDP) and suspected DD and aggressive behavior in Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR). Methods We analyzed nationally representative data from the 2023 Lao Social Indicator Survey III, including 5,007 children aged 24-59 months. CDP was assessed using an 11-item module categorized into non-violent discipline, psychological, and physical punishment. Suspected DD was measured using the Early Childhood Development Index (ECDI2030) tool; aggressive behavior was caregiver-reported. Poisson and multinomial logistic regression models were employed to estimate prevalence ratios (PRs) and odds ratios (ORs), each with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Results The prevalence of suspected DD was 56.3%. Non-violent discipline (adjusted PR: 0.82; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.80-0.87) and psychological punishment (adjusted PR: 0.90; 95% CI, 0.85-0.95) were associated with lower prevalence of suspected DD, although an interaction analysis suggested the latter effect was evident only when co-occurring with non-violent discipline. Physical punishment was associated with increased prevalence of suspected DD (adjusted PR: 1.07; 95% CI, 1.01-1.15) and higher odds of elevated aggressive behavior (adjusted OR: 2.15; 95% CI, 1.15-4.05). Conclusion Non-violent and physical discipline were differentially associated with developmental outcomes. Promoting non-violent caregiving strategies may reduce behavioral risks and support early development in Lao PDR and similar settings.
Findings the Hub has extracted
Each claim below is labelled by its type of design and links back to this report.
Problem
Developmental delay and aggressive behavior in early childhood in low- and middle-income countries
- Intervention
- Non-violent child discipline practices compared to physical and psychological punishment
- Population
- Children aged 24-59 months in Lao PDR (n=5,007)
Key finding
Non-violent discipline associated with adjusted PR 0.82 (95% CI 0.80-0.87) for suspected developmental delay