Should Parents Be Allowed To Spank Children

Many see spanking as a form of parental rights and that the parent has the right to raise their child the way they consider most appropriate. Those in favor of spanking, also hold there is little evidence that moderate spanking is harmful. Further, many believe that discipline problems among children have recently increased, and partially attribute the boost to the decline of both parental authority and the use of spanking.

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.

According to Prevent Child Abuse North Dakota, “The goal of discipline is to create an orderly, predictable, stable, and fun world to enjoy and grow healthy.” When it comes to discipling a child, there are many different courses of action that could be taken. Parents can and should discipline their children (Smenyak). There is a large controversy over the most universal discipline method there is, spanking. Many parents believe that spanking their child can be a beneficial way of correcting a child if done correctly (Smenyak). Other parents believe that spanking a child is simply abuse, that it does not work, or that “Spanking plants a seed for later violent behavior,” says AskDrSears.com.

One of the main points in the article “Why America Should Outlaw Spanking” by Emily Bazelon is about how many rights parents have in America. The main example talked about in this article is about corporal punishment and whether or not parents have the right to spank their child or not. Reasons being that some extreme parents take it too far sometimes, leaving bruises and possibly even fracturing bones. Politian’s believe that outlawing spanking would assist the courts in help make a ruling about child abuse. Spanking is a necessary evil that helps correct incorrect behavior. Growing up in the 90’s and early 2000’s we were always told that if

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.

Many of these parents who support spanking feel it is their right to do so. This is justified by the simple fact as when they were a child they were spanked and said “I turned out okay”. This is probably true for most of them, but 2017 is a different world from when they were children. Supporting parents often say they know when and where to draw the line. “At least 1,200 children are killed every year at the hands of their parents in the name of physical punishment.” (Guidance of Effective Discipline, online). As I stated early, there is no written guideline to follow, so how do we know when enough is enough? There is a huge grey area that is undefined and the true answer is they don’t. Parents sometimes forget that it is there duty to teach and educate to help our children reach their full potential. Parents need to stop justifying their rights to discipline as a parent and focus on changing the culture by using alternative methods and

Spanking in history was the typical punishment you would receive when you missed behave. Some fathers would take their belts off, make you grab a switch (a flexible tree branch that was used for punishment), a wooden spoon, or whatever was closest for the parent to grab. Spanking is defined as hitting a child on the bottom with an open hand. (Narvaez) All parents have had those moments when they are at their wits in with their children when they are being terrors, but instantly resorting to spanking is not the only resolution to get your children to listen. In fact, spanking your children may do more harm than good. Unfortunately, not all parents know the difference between abusing their children, and only spanking them one or two times. Abusing your children is never right, but spanking your child can be a form of abuse. Studies have shown that spanking may not

Why Spanking Children is Wrong Parents have been spanking their children for hundreds of years, but recently this practice has come into question. The concern is not regarding the effectiveness of spanking but the correctness of spanking. Parents should not be allowed to strike their children. Child abuse is defined as any unnecessary or intentional physical or emotional or sexual mistreatment of children. Spanking is not the only method of child discipline. Spanking is not even the most effective method of child discipline. Numerous studies have made it evident that spanking does have a negative effect on children. Spanking children should be considered child abuse because it teaches children the wrong message about hitting, it does not

The experts that are against spanking say that it is a violent act and teaches children that hitting is okay. Pro spanking advocate, Dr. James Dobson, reprinted a very informative article by Dr. Den Trumbull M.D. and Dr. S. DuBose Ravenel M.D. entitled To Spank or Not to Spank: A look at an age-old question that baffles many physicians. It states, "There is no evidence in the medical literature that a mild spank to the buttocks of a disobedient child by a loving parent teaches the child aggressive behavior" (Dobson, 2004, p. 127). Dr. Dobson also cited the doctors whose article said that it is impractical to suppose that a child wouldn't show violent behavior if parents used other forms of discipline rather than spanking. Most toddlers, who have yet to be spanked because of their age, commonly strike out against others in aggravation. This is true of any toddler, seen out in public, who throws a temper tantrum over not getting his way. Countless parents, frustrated themselves, simply remove the child from making an undesirable scene. The only thing to do for a child of that age is to remove temptation and distract the child with a toy or juice cup. As the toddler grows, distraction is more difficult and the disciplining methods increase intensity. Some experts against spanking also argue that

Living in the twenty-first century you rarely ever see someone spank their child or hear the word spank come out of a parent’s mouth. I see too many parents today that are too self-righteous to “spank” their children, because many people see spanking as form of abuse. Many parents in today’s world use more reasonable punishments for their misbehaving children. Some parents put their children in time-outs, deny them of their freedom, take toys away and ground them. I have seen parents use these methods because there are more reasonable ways of punishing their child for being disobedient. However, not everybody in today’s world uses these methods for punishing children; some parents use the act of spanking for punishment. Spanking was a popular punishment back in the 1900s, but is a very debatable topic in today’s society.

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.

American society has debated this issue of corporal punishment since the 1950s since the nuclear family was marketed to the American public. Historically children and reproduction of the human species was for survival a husband and his wife would have a child to work on their land or in a factory to bring additional income. The thought of loving their child was not shown like present day. Depending on the families social position they might be able to provide their children with more if they were higher up in their social position if a family was lower in their social position they had kids for survival. How does current society feel about corporal punishment of their children should we spank them or should we not spank them what is the context of the spanking? When a child misbehaves out of their

Discipline is one of the basic things a child learns from his parents before he or she faces the outside world to learn more about life as a whole. Teaching this trait can depend on how the parent shows it to their child and how they explain the importance of having this trait both in and out of their homes. Misbehaving children cannot be avoided as they are curious little beings and they have a tendency to explore. But there are some parents, even teachers, who do not tolerate misbehaving and they resort to corporal punishments such as spanking to make sure the child never forgets how painful it is to misbehave as they will remember the punishment entailed to it and become more disciplined. However, not all children would understand the

Children are like flowers, if well taken care of they will bloom. If ignored or tortured, they will wither and die. Child discipline is one of the most important elements of successful parenting. Today, many people have this notion that physical abuse is in no way a solution to helping children discern between right and wrong. Since generations children have been taught the art of discipline through physical punishment. Often this approach to disciplining has resulted in two outcomes, one is where the child becomes more tolerant and is willing to adhere to what he/she has been told, or the other which more often results in children developing a sense of anguish and desire to revolt.