The role of religious/spiritual importance in the association between childhood harsh parenting and adult health outcomes in Canada

Abstract

Harsh parenting includes a continuum of verbal and physical behaviours, from less serious to abusive. While experiencing harsh parenting (e.g., corporal punishment) is associated with adverse health, research has focused on abuse, overlooking less extreme behaviours. Simultaneously, the belief-as-benefit effect (BABE) describes a positive relationship between religion/spirituality (R/S) and health. R/S may buffer the health impact of harsh parenting through coping, but this remains unexamined. The current study addressed these gaps using the 2019 Canadian General Social Survey. Main models controlled for childhood abuse/neglect (N ≥ 14,900), while exploratory analyses used a non-abused/neglected subsample (N ≈ 10,400). Results showed that: (1) ‘Feeling Loved’ predicted better adult self-rated health, mental health, and well-being compared to Feeling unloved 6+ times; (2) Less frequent spanking predicted higher well-being; and (3) R/S importance buffered ‘Feeling Unloved’ only in the main models. Findings inform Canadian legislation and strategies to mitigate the effects of harsh parenting.