Is smacking your child when they do something wrong right?

Answer 1

Depends on what you mean by smacking and where. In the face or in public I think is wrong. Hitting a child in anger is wrong. But a correctional spanking on the butt I do not think is wrong. It is becoming illegal but spare the rod spoil the child. I also don't believe in spanking a child for every little thing they do wrong. Spanking should only be reserved for serious things other forms of punishment should be used for primary punishment

Answer 2

Ouch, this is a huge question and I don't believe it's black and white. Personally, I don't agree with smacking. This is probably because I was smacked as a child but I rarely understood why the thing that I'd got smacked for was so wrong - it was never discussed or explained clearly to me, without anger and condemnation. I do think that there are times when a *light* 'tap' on the hand is acceptable, PROVIDING the wrong act is explained, discussed, and negotiated if need be. Quite often, the child understanding that they have done something wrong, and thus receiving a 'light tap', can be adequate discipline - it's the act of that light tap, more than the pain (or lack of).

It seems that very often, parents whack/smack their child in anger - they take the child's misbehaviour as a personal criticism, and respond out of fear, anger, rage, rather than as loving discipline. The child will realise this, and receive it as rejection. They will modify their behaviour out of fear rather than love, and in extreme cases, will express the same violence - however mild - in unhealthy ways, either at others or at themselves.

Sorry if that's waffly; I know that long answers can be boring so I'm trying to be quick. Hope that helps your thinking, whatever you decide x

Answer 3

No definitely not (of course I don't mean punching them or anything above the neckline however). But children cannot understand reasoning because they are so young. In a way they are like animals (sounds horrible I know) they will not understand if you reason with them not to do something because they are too young, but they will however learn (like millions of children have in the past) that if they do something and it earns them a smack and that hurts, they will not do it again. I grew up with the wooden spoon (not to an extreme extent) and always knew what I was and wasn't meant to do.

And in response to whoever gave the big paragraph - there is a difference between a little smack and child abuse (no offense).
Everyone seems to be confusing smacking with hitting, or some form of actual punching. This is not what smacking is!!!!
It does not encourage violence, if it did, all of our parents generation would have turned out mass murderers (they even got caned at school). In regards to super nanny, you can still employ those methods as well, you dont have to just have one method.

Answer 4

The problem with smacking is that when annoyed, a person can smack out of anger, which is not good for the child, or does it set a good example.

Answer 5

Well,something has gone wrong somewhere,most of us were smacked as children,and i think middled aged people these days on the whole are nice people,whereas a lot of todays kids are very cheeky and disrespectul.
I dont feel it did me any harm,it didnt make us violent,i dont resent my parents for doing it,in fact just the opposite.
The schools today dont know how to handle bad behaviour any more because there is little or nothing to do to control kids.
Having said that,i dont think anything more than a short sharp smack is acceptable.

Answer 6

I don't know about Smacking them especially in front of people, but spank is another thing. I was spanked when I was a child and I am fine. I do spank my children when they are doing something wrong. but I reward them when they do something good. I never spank them in front of company or in the middle of the grocery store or anything like that. And only on the bottom. I never slap in the face or anything like that. Also don't ever spank just because you are mad that can cross the line into abuse.

Answer 7

i dont think its wrong to smack your child if they really deserve it, but then you have got think how far is too far to go before you do resort to smacking them, its never done me any harm when i was little to get the back of my dads hand or even the dreaded belt ouch!! but then things were very differnet back then theeres too many rules and regulations you have got tot hink about these days because now even if you threaten your child that you will smack them they say "well go on then and i will call the police, or childline" like my daughetr has said on many occasion she even has childlines number on speed dial on her mobile, lol, so when she starts with that line i say back to her that i am going to phone parentline lol that shuts her up staright away lol.

Answer 8

I'm not sure where you are, but at the moment this is a huge debate in Australia, whether or not to make it illegal.
I was smacked as a child, however my parents ruled by fear. I don't smack my children, however they don't have a lot of respect. (time out is a bit of a joke).
The problem as I see it, is that as parents, are we smacking for discipline or out of frustration?
If you can work out a solution, please let me know.

Answer 9

I used to smack my daughter after telling her to stop what she was doing and then counting to three to give her a chance to stop, if she didn't stop then, I smacked her on her hand. This led to her stopping doing what was annoying me/what I thought she was doing wrong the moment I started counting. When I was out I used to take her to the toilet to shout at her (less embarrassing for us both), it got to the point that if she was misbehaving all I had to do was ask if she wanted to go to the toilet and she stopped doing what was annoying me

Answer 10

A child should have the **** smacked out of it for doing wrong