The Pros And Cons Of Spanking Children

The diversity in ethnicities and cultures throughout the world is extreme. These cultures come with different visions in disciplinary action whether it seems logical or not in other points of views. The world has different perspectives and different people to back up their reasons behind the actions taken. The main controversy that has been taken on for years in several parts of the world is the debate of whether or not spanking, as a disciplinary action for children when they are misbehaving. As expressed in these three articles: “Today’s Child Abuse Creates Tomorrow’s Criminals” by Chandre Gould, “The Overwhelming Evidence Against Spanking” by Meghan Leahy, and “Disciplinary Spanking is Not Child Abuse” by Okey, Chigbo; there are severa pros and cons to an action such as spanking. This specific disciplinary action can affect the life of a human being for either a short term and long term effect.

Different variations of spanking of course can lead to more serious problems as adults. Something not as serious as Schizophrenia would be like depression, anxiety disorders, and paranoia. Castelloe also states in her article that “some studies suggest a connection between the physical punishment of children and the behavior involved in some criminal assaults.” I have a clip of what has just been reported this month on the 18th in the state of Massachusetts. As parents we want our children to grow up respectful, successful, carefree, we want to set them down the right path so they do not have it as hard as we have.

It is common knowledge that children learn from what they are taught in school and at home. What is spanking teaching our children? According to L.D. Eron “spanking models aggressive behavior as a solution to conflict and has been associated with increased aggression in preschool and school children.” (Guidance for Effective Discipline, online) The consequences of spanking does not just effect the children, but also the world around them. Expert P. Cohen says that “spanking has been associated with higher rates of physical aggression, substance abuse, increased risk of crime and violence.”(Guidance for Effective Discipline, online) Consequently, the people in today’s society who are not wanted on the streets are being taught to be this was by their own parents. Taking a look at kids who were spanked, as these kids transition into adults they are reported to have more anger. This increases the chance that they will spank their own children and put them at risk for abuse. (Guidance for Effective Discipline, online) Is spanking your child really worth it? Many parents will say “this is the only way to teach them a lesson” but look at the messages the parents are sending their children. Repeatedly spanking your child can cause aggression and turmoil. This will lead to broken child-parent relationships. According to A.M. Graziano in her article Sub-abusive Violence in Child Rearing in Middle-class

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

Spanking also effects a child emotionally. Think of a child looking up at this huge person hitting them. This could cause the child to feel inferior. In the long run, the child could develop insecurities. Spanking could also teach a child to lie. Why would a child confess to something if they knew that their punishment would be something that will cause them pain? A child's self esteem could be lowered by spanking as well. They may feel that when they are being spanked that the parent is telling them that they are a bad person and this can stay with them throughout their life. "Kids who receive a lot of physical punishment are less spontaneous, more reserved, and afraid to try

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.

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 more a child is spanked between the ages of 3 to 5 the more likely they will become aggressive (Online Psychology). Spanking can cause mental health problems and can have anti-social behavioral issues. Children that get spanked tend to defy their parents and have cognitive difficulties. When parents spank they think it is to help their child now what is right and wrong, but spanking has accidental detrimental outcomes. You don’t have to hurt a child to punish them, in 2014 about 80% of people spanked their kids. If the parent was spanked as a child the parent is more likely to support spanking

When we spank children we are crating a very unhealthy environment for children. 1. We can hurt their academic success. 2. Increase chances of children developing addictions, depression later in life.

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

CNN mentions that for decades experts have stated that spanking is not effective because it teaches a child to be scared of his parents and to not respect them (O'Callaghan, 2011). In fact it is dangerous because hitting can injure a child and teach him or her it is okay to hit someone if they disappoint them. Imagine a grown adult spanking another adult. This would be considered an assault, and is not acceptable in our society. Therefore, it is not okay for an adult to hit a child in our day and

Spanking also humiliates the child, which may cause them to lash out as a way to rectify the humiliation, for example, a parent spanks a child in front of a sibling, so the child breaks the sibling’s toy as “revenge” for them witnessing their embarrassment. It also causes anger and resentment in children, which may cause them to behave aggressively. There is evidence that hitting children encourages them to become hitters themselves, in fact there is a direct correlation between being spanked in childhood and aggressive and violent behavior in teenage and adult years according to The Natural Child Project (naturalchild.org). This is because children are naturally inclined to imitate the actions they

Spanking kids can cause damages due to their skin.Spanking would make the kids cry and would tell their parents about what happen, so then they would go see a doctor to check. Doctors have diagnose that the shape of a kid behind is a shape of a paddle which they

Spanking has been a controversial topic among many parents. Some believe it is just a form of discipline and is okay, while others believe that this is abuse or violence and it will harm the child in the long run.

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.