Maternal parenting stress from birth to 36 months, maternal depressive symptoms, and physical punishment to 10-year-old children: a population-based birth cohort study.

Maternal parenting stress experienced at 1 and 36 months after birth predicted use of physical punishment, even after adjusting for maternal depressive symptoms. Maternal support should, therefore, be provided to mothers to cope with parenting stress even three years after birth to prevent the use of physical punishment in early adolescence.