Parenting

PunishmentProducts Relating to 'Punishment'

Corporal Punishment: To Smack Or Not To Smack, That Is The Question

I'm not from the generation that received the cane, and I'm against corporal punishment, whether it be in the school or the home. I know many of the generation before me felt the cane/slipper/similar was an efficient method of keeping children in check... as far as I'm concerned, it's a form of respect through fear, and one I cannot condone. As a child I was smacked. I remember that it hurt, and it frightened me, but it certainly didn't beat bad behaviour out of me. Instead it made me afraid of my dad, and a moody child in general. How can a slight bit of naughtiness (which every child is prone to now and again) merit the infliction of physical pain, however brief? What does this teach the child? That it's okay to hit someone if you feel they've stepped out of line? What are the guidelines for smacking? When does it cease being a simple punishment, and border on abuse?

My goldmine of information on the subject is Wikipedia, which turned up the following interesting information: * Studies by the AAP found that "the more children are spanked, the more anger they report as adults, the more likely they are to spank their own children, the more likely they are to approve of hitting a spouse, and the more marital conflict they experience as adults." * Some psychological research claims that corporal punishment causes the destruction of trust bonds between parents and children. Children subjected to corporal punishment may grow resentful, shy, insecure, or violent. Adults who report having been slapped or spanked by their parents in childhood have been found to experience elevated rates of anxiety disorder, alcohol abuse or dependence and externalizing problems as adults. * Some researchers believe that corporal punishment actually works against its objective (normally obedience), since children will not voluntarily obey an adult they do not trust. A child who is physically punished may have to be punished more often than a child who is not. * Researcher Elizabeth Gershoff, Ph. D., in a 2002 meta-analytic study that combined 60 years of research on corporal punishment, found that the only positive outcome of corporal punishment was immediate compliance; however, corporal punishment was associated with less long-term compliance.[17] Corporal punishment was linked with nine other negative outcomes, including increased rates of aggression, delinquency, mental health problems, problems in relationships with their parents, and likelihood of being physically abused. * One study found that 40% of 111 mothers were worried that they could possibly hurt their children. * Before 1997, although there were many studies linking spanking with higher levels of misbehaviour in children, people could argue that it was the misbehaviour that caused the spanking. However, since that time several studies have examined changes in behaviour over time and propose a link between corporal punishment and increasing relative levels of misbehaviour compared to similar children who were not corporally punished. Reasons for corporal punishment possibly causing increased misbehaviour in the long run may include: children imitating the corporally-punishing behaviour of their parents by hitting other people; acting out of resentment stemming from corporal punishment; reduced self-esteem; loss of opportunities to learn peaceful conflict resolution; punishing the parents for the acts of corporal punishment; and assertion of freedom and dignity by refusing to be controlled by corporal punishment.

Obviously, I don't suggest that naughty children get away with their behaviour - I hate spoiled brats as much as the next person. I just feel there are more humane methods of keeping them in check. Restricting treats, for example, disallowing a child to go to a friend's party if they've been misbehaving, is a much fairer method of discipline, and teaches the child about right and wrong without suggesting that violence is ever acceptable.

Article Published: Friday 25th May 2007