Spare the Rod & Save the Child.
From the BBC:
Children who are smacked are more likely than those who are not to become aggressive and anxious, no matter what the cultural norm, a study says.
A global research team studied 336 families across six countries - some of which accepted smacking as legitimate discipline and some which did not. It found smacking resulted in more behavioural problems in all countries. But in countries where smacking was the norm, the problems were less acute, the Child Development journal reported. There are mixed opinions over whether smacking leads to behavioural problems and whether the society the child is being brought up in has an impact.
All the children who were disciplined showed higher levels of aggression, anxiety and other emotional problems than their contemporaries. But researchers did find that in countries where physical discipline was more common and culturally accepted, the behavioural problems were not as bad as when it was carried out where it was more taboo.
Lead researcher Jennifer Lansford said the findings prompted the question of whether physical discipline was "acceptable, regardless of whether it occurs commonly within a cultural group". But she added: "One implication of our findings is the need for caution in making recommendations about parenting practices across different cultural groups."
Paul Farmer, chairman of the Mental Health Alliance, which represents professionals and charities, said environmental factors such as physical discipline were likely to have an impact on behavioural problems no matter what the cultural norm. But he added: "It is not just anxiety and aggression that can be caused by trauma. Other emotional problems, such as depression, can result." Mary Marsh, director of child protection charity NSPCC, urged parents not to smack their children. "A child's safety and respect for their human rights should be at the core of caring for children." And she said parents needed support in finding out about positive parenting and alternatives to hitting.
So, should parents be allowed to hit their children? Is it ethical to ever strike a child? What is physical punishment actually teaching children? How can we tell them that violence doesn’t solve problems if we use violence against them as a teaching method? What kind of society do we produce from successive ‘beaten’ generations?
4 comments:
Hmmm, another interesting topic. My mother didn't beat, whoop, or spank me as a child, though she did my siblings. I noticed her parenting and choice of discipline varied by child. The harder the child to manage, the more likely they'd be dealt with physically. I was a shrinking violet as a child and even a raised voice would send me running to hide. There were times when I truly got defiant and felt the firm grip of my mother's nails on my upper arm as she grabbed me to get my attention, but in general, I didn't see much corporal punishment. I don't think what little physical punishment I did receive scarred me anymore than anything else in my childhood. I don't as a practice hit my own kids, though each has been spanked at least once in their lifetime. I am told I have very nice, well-behaved children, to which I reply, "have you ever seen how they behave at home?" ;-) I don't think we should hit kids in general, but every kid is different and what works for one, might not work for the next. Example, my daughter was much like me, always wanting to please, very obedient, if I even said "no" to her sternly she would burst into tears. My son, on the other hand, (actual example) I would shout "No! Stop! Don't do that, you'll get hurt!" as he was placing a dime into an electrical socket. He just looked at me the whole time with a mischievious grin, as he did it anyway. I'm sure his face is in the dictionary next to defiant. His one counselor said he had oppositional-defiance disorder. Everything's a disorder these days. But I also quickly discovered that whatever I did to my son, he would do right back, so corporal punishment and yelling never were options. He still needs a firm hand directing him and constant reminders what to do and not to do, still has t.v., gameboy and other vices taken away for poor grades and poor manners. With his particular temperment, I've discovered holding him accountable and having repercussions for his actions work better than anything else. I really do think children learn what they live and if we want to teach them non-violent ways of solving their problems, communicating and getting angry, we must do so by example. Okay, so my kids probably won't spank their kids either, but they will likely break a few dishes when they're extremely mad. Thus I never own anything but the cheapest dishes. ;-)
Mother was always the disciplinarian in the family. Dad was always afraid of really hurting us as (in his prime) he was rather well built with hands/muscles to match. Mum had a keen eye and was deadly accurate with just about anything thrown which came to hand - so much so that we learnt to move VERY quickly.
I'm not exactly sure what damage it did to us but I still absolutely hate any kind of confrontation. Maybe that's just one of the things I can think of, there's probably other things too..
Another thing, that picture you've used, that cherubic child appears to be enjoying the whacking he/she is getting with that stick, does this indicate an early prediliction for S&M? ;-) I don't think I'd be smiling if someone was hitting me with a stick. What was the artist thinking?
It does a bit doesn't it. The file is called 'Spanking Cupid' from the ever popular Google images. I have no idea who the artist was. It does look to be Victorian though... so lots of repressed sexulaity me thinks.......
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