Spanking: Should Parents Spank Their Children?

Spanking is subjective in the least. Most parents suggest that using spankings as a form of discipline is essential to the development of a compliant child. For most Americans, this truth is one of the core foundations of the American model home. “70% of mothers indicated they had spanked their child at least once by the time he or she was 2-years-old” (Lee, Altschul and Gershoff, 2015.) There are numerous amounts of evidence that point to the certainty that spanking is linked to child aggression. In,

Spanking is a fiercely debated social issue in many countries, such as the US, the United Kingdom, Canada, Israel, and Germany. There are questions over what intensity of pain is suitable until it crosses the threshold into abuse. Up until the mid-20th century it was perfectly okay in most communities for a spanking to cause a child to cry in pain throughout and have difficulty sitting down afterward, even resulting in stripes or bruises for days. Nowadays several think even mere redness of the skin abusive, while others would call it effective discipline. This causes questions as to whether children should be spanked. In addition, whether spanking is an effective method of discipline and at what point does it constitutes child abuse.

A recent study shows 70 percent of parents believe it is right to discipline a child through physical means. Most commonly, parents will spank their children but being hit with things like belts or other objects happens as well. Parenting methods haven’t changed much with time and discipline in similar no matter the country. With more studies out to find the most effective method of parenting and discipline it’s coming to attention whether or not physical harm is the best way to teach children. Parents want what is best for their children, so it is important to constantly bring up and question methods commonly accepted in the past. One method that is becoming more controversial is spanking children. Though it is still considered normal to do, it is gaining more traction and more studies are being done to find the problems it causes. Checking on parenting methods can be difficult as everyone is raised differently. It is also difficult to test which forms of punishment lead to certain outcomes. However, there is a trend of negative effects from hitting. Gershoff acknowledges, “several national professional organizations have called on parents to abandon spanking as a child rearing practice and for professionals to recommend disciplinary alternatives to spanking.” Spanking children is a terrible discipline method as it has negative effects.

Have you ever been spanked as a kid and felt angry towards your parents? Did you feel they just hated you? Spanking is a form of corporal punishment which is a punishment intended to cause pain in many different ways. Corporal punishment started in slavery and led to schools and homes. Although many states have banned corporal punishment it is still allowed in 19 out of 50 states. Many adults will agree children just need a ‘good ol’e spanking’ and others will argue that it is a negative way to parent and causes more problems. Spanking children is not a proper way of parenting because it gives a negative effect on children.

Everyday parents are faced with the challenges of disciplining their children. We all wish there was an instruction booklet that we could magical pull out and get them back on the right path, but no such thing exists. Often times, your child pushes you to the edge of your personal limitations. At this moment it is often we correct our child’s behavior by spanking. Spanking is considered a form of discipline that is acceptable by most and an unacceptable to a smaller crowd. Spanking can lead to psychological problems in early adolescent, which long term can lead to emotional and anger retention.

Even after years of research, the issue of whether spanking is an adequate discipline strategy or damaging to children remains a controversial topic. According to Kazdin and Benjet (2003) the definition of spanking is “. . . hitting a child with an open hand on the buttocks or extremities with the intent to discipline without leaving a bruise or causing physical harm (p. 100). In addition, according to Maguire-Jack, Gromoske and Berger (2012) only a few studies propose that spanking is an effective form of discipline. On the other hand, there is more evidence to show that spanking is an unsuccessful form of discipline that can led to unwanted consequences (p. 1960). I personally do not take a stance in this topic because I can see valid points from both parties. Although, I believe that the way the punishment is presented to the child is extremely important. For example, I feel that the child should know why he or she is punished and what is expected of them thereafter.

The common misconception that spanking is a form of child abuse affects the proper discipline of today's youth. Some parents are actually afraid to discipline their own children using the same method of belief from their own upbringing. Who is correct in the notion of right and wrong discipline? Is there such a thing as a correct way to spank your child? In my opinion, there is. So, my goal is to show that if the

There are different outlooks on spanking. Sheree L. Toth, author of the CNN article “When does spanking become abuse?”(CNN) discusses her negative point of view on corporal punishment. In her article, she discusses how corporal punishment can have long-lasting effects on the mental state of the child and shift parental relationships with their children, all caused by the use physical discipline. “Corporal punishment is of limited effectiveness and has potentially deleterious side effects,” Toth states. She recognizes the effects that corporal punishment may have on individuals, and she disagrees with the uses of it. Toth also understands what the outcomes

Children who have been spanked early on in life are more likely to be disobedience than children  who were not spanked(cnn). Children who are spanked are more likely to suffer from aggression and low-esteem. They also have increased risk in suffering from substance abuse and domestic violence as adults.(Diehl) In an article written by Michelle Castillo that talks about aggression in kids who were spanked: Mothers who were still spanking their child by the age of 5 -- no matter how often -- were more likely to have a child who was more aggressive than his or her peers by the time they turned nine. Mothers who spanked their child at least twice a week when they were 3 also had children more likely to have these problem behavior.

While this review of literature on spanking children is limited in finding evidence in supporting spanking, the research available that opposes spanking is rather compelling. The findings from the reviewed articles provide advice to parents, both new and long-time, on how to discipline their children if they want their children to have the best outcomes. The studies that have been reviewed are only a small amount of what has been published regarding the negative impacts that spanking can have on children. Additionally, this research may be a start for a move in society to begin viewing spanking as a negative child-rearing practice. While there is a lot more research that could be reviewed on this topic, high levels of aggression, behavioral problems, and

With new upcoming generations and a changing society, traditional practices of how people live are changing; arguably for the better or worse. Some of these changes include the controversial to spank or not to spank question, in which new studies are aiming to show the effects of spanking on children. “With more than 30 years of research, we can now visualize accurately how spanking can alter a child’s perception.” (Scrock 2009) Although spanking has been the “go-to” way of discipline, it is starting to be looked on as a form of child abuse. After all, there are great reasons as to why organizations like the American Psychological Association and American Academy of Pediatrics condemn spanking. We will talk about the problems spanking causes in children, the misconception on why parents do it, and how to properly discipline your child. This essay argues that parents should not spank their child and should instead turn to other measures of discipline.

Many studies on cases of adults who have tendency to perpetuate abuses, either as a victim or as an abuser, are traced in the pattern of violence experienced at home, and many are reportedly experience being physically violated by spanking during their childhood. Despite the information and advocacy available in almost all media these days, there are still parents who thought that spanking their children to emphasize discipline is still beneficial. The benefits cited by those supporting spanking as acceptable method of discipline varied across culture and race. Generally, there are three views or positions about spanking as a form of discipline (Benject C. & Kazdin A, 2003) : Pro-corporal punishment, anti-corporal punishment, and conditional corporal punishment.

Spanking has become an arguably debatable form of discipline. According to a study at the University of Texas, the more children are spanked, the more likely they are to defy their parents (“Spanking: Pros and Cons”). There is a connection between spanking during the childhood and mental health diagnoses later in life. There are other options of discipling your child than spanking them, especially because all children can take spanking differently. Parents should not spank their child because it showers that being “stronger” is right, demonstrates that older people have a right to hit younger people, and gives the examples that violence solves all problems.

The second reason why spanking should not be done to children is the fact that it is a form of child abuse. At the moment, countries are divided as to legalize corporal punishment or create a law saying it is illegal. In the book written by Abela (2007) for the Council of Europe, she notes that “spanking of children less than two years old increases the risk of severe physical injury and the child is unlikely to understand the connection between behavior and punishment.” Most parents tend to go overboard when disciplining their children, especially when they are very angry and have not subdued their anger. This then makes the child their venting medium to get rid of that anger and sometimes, they do not apologize and even forget why they have done the deed. Other parents tend to make this a habit and even if the child did nothing wrong, they would still continue spanking the child. Eventually, the parents may slowly abuse the child through pain and totally make the child’s life a complete hell. As a result, child becomes frail and suffers psychological problems. Some countries, especially social services, use this as grounds to get the child away from the family and file cases of child abuse and physical injury that can lead to jail time if proven guilty. Spanking may also cause scarring and may be with the child

The authors also identify the known effects of spanking on childhood outcomes. They noted that most of the literature has been concerned with aggressive child outcomes, such as increased child stress reactivity (Bugenthal, Martorell, and Barraza, 2003). They also noted that studies are emerging on the connection between spanking and child cognitive outcomes. (Gershoff, 2010). They criticize these emerging works as suffering from a lack of "…adequate controls for the predictors of spanking, risk factors which themselves could be