Bullies also identified significantly more non-biological fathers as their father figures. Non-biological fathers are known to be more inconsistent, careless, and uninvolved in the way they discipline than biological fathers.21 Conversely, living with the two biological parents was found to be a protective factor against bullying.22 About one third of the students of this sample were corporally punished at least once a week, a number in conformity with previous research in Brazil.12 Recently, associations between experiencing spanking and willingness to strike in order to solve conflicts between peers PI3K inhibitor have also been found.23 Gershoff11 argues that, when parents use corporal punishment, they

are teaching their offspring that hitting is an acceptable way of dealing with interpersonal conflicts. Trembley24 indicates

that aggression is a natural tool children use to obtain what they want, and that learning to regulate these natural behaviors is generally called ‘socialization’. Discipline involves fostering many desirable behaviors that are not part of a child’s natural repertoire, but that need to be taught through parental attention, encouragement, and explanation. Conversely, corrective discipline is as necessary as preventive, since children frequently test the limits previously PCI 32765 established. Failure to take corrective action is a risk factor for child behavior problems, as inadequate corrective discipline is an important aspect of child neglect.9 Therefore, some power-assertive discipline is essential to establish clear limits and reduce undesirable behaviors. However, punishment should not be delivered in a way that depreciates, shames, or puts the child at risk of harm, as it occurs with corporal punishment and psychological aggression. The study has some limitations. Primarily, due Urocanase to its cross-sectional nature, we cannot be confident about the causal direction of the associations. Children who are predisposed to bullying might elicit punitive and harsher discipline when milder ones do not

seem to work, what was previously described as child effects.25 Second, the study relies on children and adolescents’ reports of individual and parental behaviors. It would have been interesting to corroborate these self-reports with other informants. However, an adequate parent-child agreement for observable behaviors, such as control and discipline, has been demonstrated, and that children and adolescents are capable of providing accurate reports.26 Lastly, this study did not investigate mental disorders in the parents or in the students, which could be an important factor for either parents’ use of punitive discipline or the children’s aggressive behavior at school. This study has some important strengths that should be acknowledged. First, it was conducted in a community-based sample from public schools, increasing the external validity of the findings.