Although discipline and punishment are commonly perceived as synonymous, there’s a difference between the two terms: while discipline focuses on changing behaviour, punishment is defined as “suffering, pain, or loss that serves as retribution” or as “severe, rough or disastrous treatment”.

Much evidence suggests that punitive environments (those in which corporal and harsh verbal punishment are common) are not effective for learning.

One study found that punitive environments led to unhappy children with low self confidence and lower social and academic competence.