The importance of listening to children: A qualitative study on the use of parental physical punishment in childhood in Australia

This article presents insights from a qualitative research study conducted in Victoria, Australia, in which children and adults reflected on children s status and vulnerability in contexts where physical punishment is sanctioned. Children s contributions to this research demonstrated their competence to consider issued that affect them and reveal the importance of including children s voices in debates about parental physical punishment. The authors proposed that children s insights can enlighten adults.