Most of us have seen the research about spanking and hitting kids—that these behaviors have no lasting positive effect on discipline and, in fact, are harmful to children's development. But if yelling has become an acceptable substitute in your home, you might want to rethink. New research shows it may be just as ineffective and harmful to kids' mental health and behavior as physical discipline.  

In a recent study of 13- and 14-year-olds from the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Education and the University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research, researchers found that parents who yell may actually be exacerbating and promoting the continuation of their teenagers' bad behavior while also promoting higher levels of depressive symptoms. Further, these effects on adolescents over time were similar to the effects caused by hitting, and “parental warmth,” or the strong bond and love between parent and child, didn’t reduce the negative impact of yelling.

If you tend to yell at your kids, researchers suggest you try speaking to them on an equal level and calmly present your concerns and rationale in age-appropriate terms. By communicating in a non-threatening way, parents can be more effective in addressing the root of their kids' behavioral problems without damaging relationships. This isn't to say it's always easy to control tempers and keep voices down, but this study shows it's certainly worth the extra effort to try. Deep breathing, anyone?

Click here for tips on anger and yelling management.