Corporal Punishment Corporal punishment has been a part of family life for thousands of years, taking its place in societies all over the globe. From wood switches to thick leather belts, all sorts of tools have been used to discipline naughty children. No one has ever really examined the question of whether or not this form of punishment is productive or counterproductive. In examining the situation of whether or not this form of punishment is warranted or even what one might consider proper, a sample situation must be examined. Let’s say, for argument’s sake that a little boy named Johnny just threw a temper tantrum and threw his bowl of Coco CrispiesÓ all over the kitchen floor. Now there are two things his mother could do at this point to correct him. She could either use corporal punishment, taking it’s form in nearly abusive words or a few backhand’s across his face, or she could simply have a talk with him and explain why his behavior was wrong and why he should not do it again. Now which one would accomplish more? Obviously, simply talking to little Johnny would ac...
For example, in 1999 a study in corporal punishment prevalence done by Straus and Stewart found that corporal punishment is more common in the southern US. On the same way, in 2014 Kemme et al. study about the parental corporal punishment experience in childhood and adolescence found that individuals who experience any type of physical punishment by their parents tend to be more punitive that those who come from a household where corporal punishment was not implemented. However, based on class content, physical punishment involving an object is considered as child physical abused, therefore, it should be processed. There are many other ways in which a child can be punished by a misbehavior without having to take the risk of weakening parent-child bond or physically abusing the child. Also, other ways that will not condition the individual to believe that violence is justified, that gives justification to more serious abuse, or to contribute to see punishment as an appropriate means to shape
The term corporal punishment means the intentional infliction of pain on the body for purposes of punishment and includes slapping, hitting with objects, pinching, shaking and forcing to stand for long periods of time (Epoch 1). Family researchers define corporal punishment as " the use of physical force aimed at causing children to experience pain but not injury, for the purposes of correction and control of youthful behavior" (Day 83). Spanking is one form of physical or corporal punishment (Epoch 1).
Should corporal punishment, more specifically, spanking be outlawed? Do most people even know what corporal punishment is, what affects it has on those who receive it, who is incorporating it into their discipline, and what benefits corporal punishment might have? Spanking is the most controversial form of corporal punishment historically and in our society today. Spanking is a form of punishment that involves an adult striking the buttocks of an infant, toddler, child, or teenager. Proponents of spanking say that it is a form of discipline that will help the child know they made a mistake or did something wrong. I don’t believe giving your child a spanking or “whipping them” for what they did wrong is wrong. Discipline is a Latin word that means “teaching” or “learning” and I believe spanking a child for serious, harmful, or uncontrolled bad behaviors is appropriate.
The deciding factor in the future of corporal punishment is seen in the Ingraham v. Wright Supreme Court case. In 1970, James Ingraham, an eighth grade student of Drew Junior High School was one of the many beneficiaries of corporal punishment distributed by Willie Wright, the principal of the high school. The rationality behind Ingraham’s punishment was that he was slow to respond to his teacher instructions. As a result, his teacher sent him to the principal office where he bent over the table was given twenty licks with a paddle. The paddling was so severe, according to the Ingraham’s doctor, he needed to miss weeks of school due to hematoma on his buttocks. Defined by Merriam-Webster, a hematoma is clotted blood that forms in a tissue by broken blood vessels. Subsequently, a ninth grade student at the same school, Roosevelt Andrews, also suffered egregious attacks for minor offenses. Principal Wright on two occasions punished Andrews for anticipating a late arrival to a class he was in route to. During the first attack, Andrews was hit with a wooded paddle on the buttocks and over the arm. This beating deprived him of full access from his injured arm for weeks. The second punishment, though, more vicious due to carelessness and a lack of official oversight, Andrews was hit from his neck to legs. According to Newell (1972) in referencing The Children’s petition of 1669, teachers and administrators have taken up an office they are unable to manage; the evidence of mismanagement is seen in corporal punishment.
In a final analysis of the pros and cons of Corporal punishment, it seems that the present penal system until further studies on the alternative are conclusive, should remain in effect. Corporal punishment does provide some insight, although presents too many risks and negative possibilities at this time.
If your family is like 90% of the population, then you have been disciplined using corporal punishment or have discipled your children with it. The topic of whether parents should use corporal punishment has been debated for years, and it is illegal in the United States to use physical punishment; however, each state’s law on corporal punishment varies and all allow some form of physical punishment. New studies greatly question whether corporal punishment should be used when discipling children. Parents or guardians should not be allowed to use corporal punishment because it causes anti-social behavior, it increases aggression, and it causes cognitive problems.
This leads to an editorial written by Miami Herald columnist, Leonard Pitts Jr. who is the author of “Spare the Rods, Spoil the Parenting.” In this essay, Pitts uses rhetorical tactics in his article to present his views on corporal punishment. The genre of this editorial is an op-ed (opinionated-editorial) piece. Pitts persuasively try to convince his audience, who are parents, to understand that disciplining a child i...
Physical child abuse is defined in various ways. Most people would recognize it as the presence of an injury that the child sustains from someone who is caring for them. The injuries are also referred to as inflicted or nonaccidental injuries. Some common examples of inflicted injury are fractures, burns, bruises, subdural hematoma, head trauma, and shaken baby syndrome. Physical abuse may also be in the form of maltreatment, including hitting with a hand, stick, strap, or other object; punching; kicking; shaking; throwing; burning; stabbing; or choking to the extent that harm results. The National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect (NCCAN) estimated that 37% of children with maltreatment injuries developed a disability or special need,
Spanking. It is a hotly debated topic, and everyone who has an opinion seems to have a strong one. It is either child abuse or it is a fundamental form of discipline. It is traumatizing or it is character-building. It is repugnant or it is commendable. Many have difficulty removing their emotions from such a controversial topic. I, myself, struggle to consider objectively a situation I’ve always deemed moral and paramount to a child’s development, but with the cruciality of raising the next generation, objectivity is imperative. Because children are wayward and often misunderstand instructions, parents must decide early on how they will discipline their child. This raises the controversial question: Should parents use corporal punishment
Parents often come through situations where young children often disrupt their parents by ignoring the realism of the verdict they create. At this fact, some parents may select to physically punish their children and show their frustration. Before spanking, parents should consider the use all the other non-violent forms of discipline and if none work then finally the act of spanking can be justified. Parents have to understand that they will have to discipline their children for many ages. A spanking needs to be part of that discipline. People must appreciate that as long as the child is spanked in the right method, it is certainly not child abuse but it is only discipline. If a parent is self-controlled and systematic, spanking is not violence or abuse. In reality, spanking can r...
This essay will discuss whether it is thought that punishment is effective and whether it is currently thought to work, additionally it will examine the best ways to change a child’s behaviour in terms of positive and negative reinforcements. The issue of child punishment has received considerable critical attention within many cultures. Punishment towards children can be argued to be a very controversial area. It is argued that many people have been brought up with distinctive beliefs about punishments toward a child. A child’s upbringing is argued by many researchers to be key to how they will go on to treat their own children in the future. This can surely be argued to be a negative effect of physical punishment. It is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore the effects of what severe punishment may have on a child. Later convictions of violence and the evidence of damaging effects on well-being, corporal punishment has on children is overwhelming. However, it is not ingrained that corporal punishment is definitely damaging. There is also sufficient evidence to corporal punishment being an effective form of discipline, if used appropriately. It is thought that corporal punishment helps parents retain control over their children’s behaviour. This essay will consider the various forms of punishment, such as physical punishments and whether they are considered to work. This is essay will also consider effective ways of changing a child’s behaviour including the use of classical and operant conditioning and studies that support the theories and how they can be applied to real life. Classical conditioning for example uses learning through association, memory prompts the person to associate an object/ sound to a certain behaviour. ...
When I was a child, I could not remember a time when my parents spanked me. I asked my mom how she and my dad disciplined my three brothers and I, and she said she never spanked us. When we got into trouble we were sent to our room, and had privileges taken away. My mom also said that she can remember spanking my younger brother once, but left a bruise on his bottom, and she felt so bad that she never did it again.
“It hurts and it’s painful inside – it’s like breaking your bones; it’s loud and sore, and it stings; it feels like you’ve been adopted or something and you’re not part of their family; you feel like you don’t like your parents anymore; you feel upset because they are hurting you, and you love them so much, and then all of a sudden they hit you and you feel as though they don’t care about you” (Pritchard 9). These are the feelings of those juveniles who suffer from corporal punishment. Corporal punishment has been one of the main topics of research in Psychology in last few decades. Although people had believed, “Spare the rod and spoil the child” but in the present age of science, research has revealed that the corporal punishment causes more harm to the children instead of having a positive effect on them. According to UNICEF, “Corporal punishment is actually the use of physical measures that causes pain but no wounds, as a means of enforcing discipline” (1). It includes spanking, squeezing, slapping, pushing and hitting by hand or with some other instruments like belts etc. But it is different from physical abuse in which punishment result in wounds and the objective is different from teaching the discipline. Although Corporal punishment is considered to be a mode of teaching discipline and expeditious acquiescence, however, it leads to the disruption of parent-child relationship, poor mental health of juveniles, moral internalization along with their anti-social and aggressive behaviour and it is against the morality of humans.
Corporal punishment is the physical disciplinary method used by parents, teachers, and school administrators in an effort to correct a child’s undesirable behaviors. The use of physical force is one that is often times controversial and usually evokes very strong reactions. These feelings surface, and opposing views clash, when scandals surrounding corporal punishment hit the media and heated arguments in the comments section of articles emerge. While corporal punishment occasionally makes its way into the limelight, it is a decision all parents are faced with eventually and often times daily. For example, when a toddler is sprawled out on the grocery store floor kicking, hitting, and flinging
Physical punishment has been a problem in hitting their children so they can have discipline or not hitting them because it is not right, so what can parents do and what can they not do? Should the parents hit them to learn discipline, or should they not hit them and figure out another way to make them learn what discipline is?