should you spank your child?

Question

please answer this for me its a school project. I also need to know your age, race, sex, and if you have childern. Thank you.

Answer 1

Yes, I am a 36, Female, White, and have 3 daughters, all of who know what it's like to go over the knee.
Dad is 38, white.

Answer 2

36, female, white, children.

I spank and not just as a last resort. I have a paddle specifically designed for the purpose. And I use it in a way that shocks many people--on their bare fanny. And I have great well adjusted, well-behaved kids.

There is really no question that spanking--if done correctly works better than any other form of punishment. Of course, there are some "experts" and parents who say that punishment should have no role in child discipline. These people talk about "natural consequences"--I have no idea what this means--should we let a child get run over when they run in the street?

A lot of these people advocate reason and talk--kinda difficult with little kids. And if a child knows what they are doing is wrong there needs to be a consequence--not just more talk.

The research showing that spanking does not work or causes violence is seriously flawed. In fact there is good scientific research showing it does not cause violence and is the most effective way to get kids to comply with their parents' wishes. I wrote about this extensively on my blog in an entry call "A Critique of Anti-Spanking Research"--you can get there from my Yahoo Answers profile. The entry is no longer highlighted--you need to go through the old articles and find it. If you are interested and can not find it drop me a line.

Answer 3

i am a Spanish male 57, i do have a son hes 10, i disagree spanking a child it could & will lead to more aggressive behavior. i discipline my son by grounding him from his bike, playstation, t.v. & his friends. bad progress report from school, & his report card as well. my son loves to go up town with me to run errands & sometimes i take that away from him. it works very well for me so far i have not had any problems with him for some time now. there are 3 vital elements which is a learning invironment characterized by positive, supportive parent-child relationships, a strategy for teaching & reinforcing positive behaviors, a strategy for decreasing & eliminating undesired behaviors. kids may become better kids only if the parents would reward their children when good behavior sets in make sure you praise your child which me & the wife does with our son we sure can see the difference in his behavior patterens. if bad behavior sets in by all means do not spank your child instead ignore your child, send your child to time-out you might think about taking away some of your child's privileges spanking your child is not the answer for anyone not even in the privacy of your own home. many parents today report that they use spanking to punish unacceptable behaviors, spanking is among the least effective forms of discipline.

Answer 4

I am 24. Native American, female, and I have two girls ages 4 and 5. I do not spank I think it is worthless. I tried, but I taped them on the butt and they thought it was funny. We use time out as a punishment. It is alot easier anyway. I don't have to chase them around. I also have A boy on the way. We will see how that goes.

Answer 5

I'm white, 37, female. I have two sons. Ages 15 and 12. I'm married. College graduate.
I have spanked my children in the past. Not very often. But when they did things that were REALLY REALLY bad - destroyed property, or hurt someone, or endangered their own lives, I have spanked them.
Only with the open palm on the butt cheeks - fully clothed. It hurt their feelings more than it caused pain.
They are too big to spank now. Now I ground them.

Answer 6

I think spanking is hitting hard enough to make their bodies move and your hand hurts from it too. The only time I do this is when my girls do something dangerous to get their attention big time (light sockets, running in the street, running away from me in crowded places) Then I give them big hugs and let them know I love them. Other than that,I dont really do it because they are much more affected by my disappointment or facial expressions than they are with my physical aggression. When I spank them for the serious stuff, it really means something because I dont do it otherwise.
I am white, have two white daughters who are 5 and 2 and Im 30

Answer 7

I am 46 yrs old, Caucasian, female with 5 children and 5 grandchildren. It is never acceptable to hit a child. The only thing this teaches them is "I'm bigger than you, I can't control myself therefore I'll hit you because I can't think of an appropriate way to discipline you!" I have NEVER hit a child or anyone else in my lifetime. I understand frustration in trying to teach children but I abhor people who vent their own frustration on a child! This does not mean don't discipline! There is a huge difference! Good luck with your project!

Answer 8

21, white, female, 1 boy (1 yr.)

No, I don't believe you should spank your child. You're teaching the child that hitting is okay, when it's definitely not. And what if your child was to hit another child? They would think that it's okay, since you do it to them. It teaches bad things. The most I've ever done is tap my son on the hand when he reaches for something hot or dangerous. I refuse to do anything worse than that.

Answer 9

If they do something to deserve it, yes. My mom popped my brother and me on the inside of the hand when we were younger, never on top of the hand b/c u could pop blood vessels, and when we were older, say around 7 or so, we would get whatever she got her hands on first. To be honest, i think i'ts a better form of disipline. "grounding" only teaches kids that 'if i do something bad, this is all i'll get.' Im 18 now, African American, and a female with a child on the way, whom i will spank if the occasion calls for it. P.S. good question :-)

Answer 10

Some children remember spanking messages more than nurturing ones. They will remember and be most influenced by the 1 hit than the 100 hugs. Hitting just devalues a child. Children need to predict the outcome in order to behave good in the future. Parents should never spank because using fear and pain is the wrong way to go about it.
Spanking is a form of violence that teaches children that inflicting fear and pain on others is a way to control their behavior. Parents who spank are out of control and are not disciplined parents. It just teaches children how to hit, how to be sneaky, how to fear, how to be ashamed and how to take anger out on others. All degrees of spanking- light, moderate, occasional, rarely, always- give children the wrong kind of attention. You want your child to follow rules because they are right and good, not to avoid punishment because they are scared and become sneaky. When parents spank, they stop their children at the lowest level of moral development. So all the idiots that recommend to spank are eroding their childs ability to be empathetic. When you react with anger to childrens' behavior, we teach them to act without considering another persons' feelings-another consequence we need to avoid. Then when your child doesn't have empathy, it is impossible for them to learn to share, play well with others, avoid angry and violent actions, and take responsibility for their actions. I have children and am studying early childhood development in college. I am against spanking. Children of non-spanking parents tend to be easy to manage and well-behaved because these parents set clear standards for what is expected, provide lots of love and affection, explain things to the child, and recognize and reward good behavior. Non-spanking parents also pay more attention to their children’s behavior, both good and bad, than parents who spank do.


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