Table of Contents About Me ...................................... 1 Introduction................................... 2 Review of Literature ........................4 Methodology ................................. 10 Data and Analysis .......................... 12 Conclusion ................................. 18 Works Cited ............................... 20
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About Me My name is London Bennett and I am eighteen years old. I am currently a freshman, finishing up my first year at the University of Denver. My plans at the University of Denver is to study business management and child-school psych development, with a minor in communications or Spanish. My goals for the future is to hopefully open and run my own gymnastics center with a physical therapy business connected right next door. At DU, I hope to engage in networking skills to help benefit my future and make my dreams come true.
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Introduction People are taught about love and are taught how to love early in their childhood. Although a person’s experience with love is different, it is these life experiences that are the foundation and the basis of how we love one another. It is not uncommon for children growing up to never feel that they are loved. The words “I love you” are seldom spoken by most parents. Therefore, it is often confusing for children to feel any sincerity associated with those three words. It is even more confusing; however, if those words are muttered during the physical act of being spanked. Parents tend to display their love and affection non-verbally with their children. The most common nonverbal display of love is the act of being spanked. This type of behavior confuses children. Some of this behavior is often followed with ridiculous comments such as; “this is going to hurt me more than it is going to hurt you.” These comments are emotionally devastating to a child and can have life-long affects. The most interesting discovery because of the controversy that this topic generates is the argument behind most spankings. It is not uncommon for parents to spank their kids. Yet, even after years of spankings, children never doubt their parents love. It was according to parents, “how it was”. So, why was a spanking viewed as a gesture of love? Although, our conscious and heart tells us that spankings are not right. Parents should not hit, spank, whip, or beat their child because there are other actions that can be used to discipline a child. I decided to take the route to speak about discipline, mainly spanking because it has been the number one ranked form of discipline for many years. Spanking was allowed in classrooms or even daycare’s many years ago to correct a child’s behavior, but little did people know about the harm they were causing upon these children. Although, spanking may have corrected the behavior in the moment, it could have led to aggression throughout their childhood years. I believe there are other positive alternatives that should be considered before spanking a child. It is not my say in how a parent disciplines their child, but it is
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up to me to showcase the effects of spanking and what researchers have been focusing on to prove for many on-going years. Throughout my research report, you will encounter four other important pieces of writing that are extremely vital to fulfilling my goals. The four articles of writing include, my review of literature, methodology, method, and the conclusion. First is my review of literature which will showcase known facts about the very controversial topic of spanking. It will display the positive, the negative, alternatives of spanking, and people who have been in trouble with the law due to spanking their children. Second is my methodology, were I take on my own route of showing you why there are better alternatives of discipline than spanking. My methodology is important but the results that I have received back within my data analysis chapter are amazing and can be very beneficial in the near future. The data analysis writing lays out the foundation of future projects because I decided to fill a gap in the field of discipline that I believe was missing. Lastly, is the conclusion where I summarize the bigger picture of my research report and future goals that I have in mind about my topic of spanking. I do not want to spoil my research and tell you exactly what I found, so it is up to you to take the journey through my very interesting report of spanking.
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Review of Literature There are experts in the field of discipline that support the idea of using positive forms of discipline. In the book The Case against a Spanking: How to Discipline Your Child without Hitting, Irwin A. Hyman, an expert of the Field of Discipline on Home and School Discipline, asserts the need to find alternatives. He suggests other alternatives than spanking because it is emotionally unhealthy1. Every day thousands of children are verbally and physically abused and it is up to society to educate parents on alternative methods other than spankings. Spankings exist and there is nothing more painful than witnessing a spanking on a child. Discipline, often mistaken by abuse by some people, is said to take away a child’s civil rights. However, people continue to be fascinated by the graphic video of Aransas County Court-at-Law Judge William Adams who hit his almost 16-year old daughter for several minutes as discipline for using an illegal computer. More than 2.4 million viewers watched on YouTube2. Society is fascinated with violence. Parents have their own opinion regarding teenagers and their rights. Parents often use any number of reasons to support the ritual of spanking. Judge Adams issued a statement saying that his daughter posted the video after he threatened to end her financial support. “What the father did is pretty horrific, and it is clearly not discipline,” says Elizabeth Gershoff, an associate professor of human development and family sciences at the University of Texas Austin. “If that judge had done that to any other person he would have gone to jail3. Children need certain discipline; however, there are correct ways to discipline. The critics of spanking stress to parents the alternatives and benefits of using positive reinforcement. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that parents use other forms of discipline. They suggest using time1
Hyman, Irwin A. The Case against Spanking. Jossey-Bass Publishers: San Francisco, CA 1997.
Viral Video puts focus on beating children.” USA Today,” November 2011. “November 2011 <http:web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detailvid. 3 Viral Video puts focus on beating children.” USA Today,” November 2011. “November 2011 <http:web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detailvid. 2
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outs. Time-outs are healthy alternatives for disciplining children because they give children a time to reflect on their behavior. These reflecting moments help children to relax and think about their emotions rather than acting on them4.Yet, simply saying “no” to a child, or “punishments like time-outs or the taking away of privileges is not effective for all children, each family, child and parent are unique and learn differently with a different type of discipline. Whatever the form of discipline, if a parent truly loves their child they will think before they act. Other studies validate the views of researchers. Murray Straus, a Social Science researcher, found a relationship between “the physical punishment children experience when they are young and the violent acts they themselves commit during their teenage and adult years5. So, then the question must be answered, is physical punishment violence? As defined, violence is synonymous with the term “physical aggression” as used in social psychology6. The definition of assault, like the definition of violence refers to an act, whether injury occurred as a result of that act7. So, the effects of physical punishment by parents can be devastating and there is proven data and theory to prove it. The Cultural Spillover Theory says that violence tends to increase the probability of criminal violence as evidence in the graphs. The model predicts that physical punishment increases the probability of “street crime”8. If parents do not spank, how do they teach their children right from wrong? In order to be a loving and controlling parent, parents must know the difference between love and abuse when punishing children. Physical punishment is deeply rooted in Euro-American religious and legal traditions9. Therefore, parents should invest their time into finding new positive alternatives rather than spanking. When a parent says, “Go to your room and think about Park, Alice: “The Long-Term Effects of Spanking” Time 3 May 2010: Vol. 175 issue 17. DelCampo Robert L. and DelCampo Diana S. Taking Sides. Pushkin Publishing: Gulford, Connecticut 1995. 4
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www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/12/131211103958.htm DelCampo Robert L. and DelCampo Diana S. Taking Sides. Pushkin Publishing: Gulford, Connecticut 1995. 8 DelCampo Robert L. and DelCampo Diana S. Taking Sides. Pushkin Publishing: Gulford, Connecticut 1995. 9 DelCampo Robert L. and DelCampo Diana S. Taking Sides. Pushkin Publishing: Gulford, Connecticut 1995. 7
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what you’ve done”, it is positive and a child has time to reflect on their behavior. Spanking is not the only way to get a message across. Taking something, away from a child works well too. Researchers support this healthy form of disciplining children. Researchers at Tulane University provide evidence that a “child’s short-term response to a spanking may make them act out more in the long run”. The research included 2,500 children in the study and those who were spanked more frequently at age 3 were more likely to be aggressive at age 510. Kids misbehave for many reasons and a variety of factors cause misbehavior. For example, children develop low self-esteem, make poor choices for friends and become suicidal. In addition, children will self destruct from using drugs and alcohol11. A research review completed in 2002 by Knox and Lentini completed a study among more than 36,000 individuals and 88 studies on the topic. The study confirmed that “spanking and other forms of corporal punishment are related to: increased aggressiveness and delinquent behavior in children, poorer parent/child relationships, worse child mental health, increased physical abuse of children, increase adult aggression and criminal behavior, decreased adult mental health and increased risk of abusing one’s own spouse or child as an adult”12. Researchers have studied spanking and its effects and their findings can help us make better decisions. Treating a child with abusive behavior and disciplining a child are different because a light tap on the behind is not as harsh as a slap on the face. Also, the amount of force used is different from parent to parent. Furthermore, the Bible is relied on as well as a valuable reference for parents. The Bible says, “He who spares his rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him promptly”13. The verse is used by parents to justify their spanking and it is highly referred to by many. Parents are learning how to teach their children boundaries and this does not imply that a parent refrains from punishing their child. If a child does something wrong, parents have to learn to focus on teaching self-discipline and teaching responsibility. There are dozens Park, Alice: “The Long-Term Effects of Spanking” Time 3 May 2010: Vol. 175 issue 17. Olive, M. Foster. Child Abuse and Stress Disorders. New York: InfoBase Publishing, 2007. 12 Lentini, Jennifer dr. and Knox, Michele PHD “On Spanking” Pediatrics for Parents Vm. 26, Numbers 5 & 6. 10 11
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Bible, NKJV Study Bible. USA: Thomas Nelson, Inc., 1997
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of countries that have banned spanking as a form of child discipline. Sweden banned spanking in 197914. According to an article that was written in U.S. News on whether there should be a law banning spanking, most of the article describes spanking as a drug with harmful side effects15. Besides, just because many children turned out okay who were spanked does not necessarily make it okay. Simply stated, spanking is hitting, either with a hand or with an instrument, with the attention of causing physical pain, typically as a form of discipline16. Indeed, if a parent is using spanking as a way to teach a child right from wrong this does not change the meaning associated with it. All in all, every child needs guidance and as a child develops into a teenager and later young adult, research shows that spanking may lead to sexual problems later. The analysis of four studies by Murray Straus, co director of the Family Research Laboratory at the University of New Hampshire-Durham, suggests that “children whose parents spanked, slapped, hit or threw objects at them may have a greater chance of physically or verbally coercing a sexual partner, engaging in risky behavior or engaging in masochistic sex, including arousal by spanking”17. “Although, linking these two together is a big leap”, says human-sexuality researcher John Delamater of the University of Wisconsin, “it is probably one of many elements that contribute to risky sex”18. Many children who are spanked come to associate excitement with violence which leads to repressed memories of physical or emotional abuse19. Parents can provide their children with positive forms of discipline by understanding their teen’s world, talking with their teenager and sharing their personal experience20 . Straus, Murray A. “Should There Be a Law Banning Spanking of children?” US News Digital Weekly. 9, September 2011: Vol. 3 issue 36. 15 Straus, Murray A. “Should There Be a Law Banning Spanking of children?” US News Digital Weekly. 9, September 2011: Vol. 3 issue 36. 16 Lentini, Jennifer dr. and Knox, Michele PHD “On Spanking” Pediatrics for Parents Vm. 26, Numbers 5 & 6. 17 “Viral Video puts focus on beating children.” USA Today,” November 2011. “November 2011 <http:web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detailvid. 18 “Viral Video puts focus on beating children.” USA Today,” November 2011. “November 2011 <http:web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detailvid. 19 Dale, Stan, Mothering. Spanking is an addiction. Winter 93, Issue 69. 20 Nelsen, Jane and Lott, Lyn. Positive Discipline for Teenagers. Prima Publishing: Rockin, CA 1994. 14
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Though spanking is a controversial topic, it is never a valid form of punishment because research has shown that it does not help a child understand right from wrong. Yet, only gets across to a child that he/she has done something terribly wrong. A loving parent seeks to become educated and to provide alternatives for disciplining their child. What was done years ago is not acceptable and that there is a fine line concerning what punishment and abuse means for every parent. Fortunately, with the media a lot of family traditions that were once done in the dark are exposed for everyone to see. Hopefully, now people everywhere will agree that a spanking is never a valid form of punishment and there are positive alternatives.
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Methodology This exploratory study was designed to examine the perspective of spanking from adultâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s points of view. Also, included in this study was making sure the adults provided background information about how they may have been disciplined and if their parents were disciplined as well. To create this study, there are a variety of participants ranging from different cultures/races and ages to provide different sets of answers from a range of unique individuals. I decided to open my research to all cultures and races, because cultures and races play a big role in how parents decide to discipline their children. There was no exact criteria for the study except to be of eighteen years of age or older, for legal reasons. The study is more directed towards adults with kids, but receiving feedback from adults who plan on having children and were spanked as kids is just as important. This is important because it will showcase how adults may impact their kidsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; way of discipline in the future. Not to mention, it allows myself to see if adults are capable of disciplining their children without spanking them. Before conducting the survey, the participants were noted that there information would be used for a research paper of good use, and their names would not be used. To begin, I decided to conduct a questionnaire that was accessible through the internet because it allowed easy access to a diverse audience. I wanted to target and broaden the age along with cultural differences, so the best way to apply this is through an online questionnaire. If I decided to use teachers there are liability issues that I can interfere with if they were to be very personal and open about their disciplinary rules inside the house. Also, if I used primarily students within the DU community, that would have skewed my results because majority of the ethnicity amongst campus is white/caucasians. Therefore, using an online questionnaire was the best possible way to conduct my research. To introduce my research, the first thing I considered was what did I want to know? What new research could I conduct that can help benefit others or simply just be an eye opening questionnaire for each generation to learn off of. Following these set of questions, thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s when I decided to get the perspective of
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spanking from all different age groups. It was an anonymous questionnaire conducted by myself and having an anonymous audience was important because people are more honest with how they state personal opinions especially when it comes to disciplining their children. The ages of the participants ranged from 18-50+ years or older, with more than half of the participants (80.22%) falling in the category of being 1830 years old, 13.19% fell between 31-50 years old, and lastly 6.59% were 51 years of age or older. Also, highly noted is the amount of females who responded to the survey, acknowledging them at 72.83%. As researchers noted, men are more likely to spank their kids, and young female children are less likely to have been a target of harsh corporal punishment (spanking). There were a total of 92 participants, from inside and outside of the DU community who completed a questionnaire to examine their perspective on spanking. I conducted this questionnaire because it is important to acknowledge the importance of how spanking is most likely passed down from generation to generation, the lack of history people may not understand about spanking and its effects. Lastly, this questionnaire is of importance to my research paper because most researchers do not go to the extent to understand why people use spanking as a force of discipline.
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Data and Analysis To begin, the foundation of my data that I collected was to see the perspective of spanking from the eyes of young and older adults. The main questions I focused on were, if there were other methods besides spanking to use upon their children, and also, if they knew the smallest amounts of harm spanking caused would they be more likely to stop spanking or continue. There were other questions asked as well, but the main focus of the study was to understand how young and older adults felt about harsh corporal punishment, also known as spanking. I chose to focus mainly on the perspective of spanking because from previous studies I have read researchers only focused on families who spank their children and the outcomes. From the articles and books I have read that discuss spanking, researchers focused their studies on high levels of aggression in children that are spanked, low levels of nurture in parents who spank their children, and where adults may have received their discipline tips from. Therefore, I decided to target a different direction, set a new foundation and see why people use the form of spanking to discipline their children, and how do they feel about spanking to discipline their children. To follow up, the survey included 92 participants that were over the age of 18 years old. Between the ages of 18 to 30, was a total of 80.22%, 31-50 years old was 13.19%, and 50 years of age was 6.59%. These percentages begin my questionnaire and allow me to get an understanding of how my feedback may differ if I had received more feedback from older participants. The participants fell under three categories, relatives, friends, and the DU community which also give me insight on my feedback because education plays a role in choosing disciplinary actions within households. In other words, gathering information from these three specific audiences allow me to gather a sense of differences that fall under age, race/ethnicity, home environments and education backgrounds. Second, is the amount of people who have kids, who were spanked as kids, and if their parents were spanked as kids. This was an important finding, because researchers throughout the years have proven to validate that if adults
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were spanked from their parents, it would be followed through generations as a form of discipline within their own household. For exact matters, 13.48% said yes to having kids, 58.43% said no to having kids, and 28.09% said they plan on having kids in the near future. To showcase the amount of people spanked as children has a close relation to the amount of parents spanked as children, falling behind only at a 4.4%. What this tells me and what I hope for my audience to learn as well, is that what children see their parents doing will then become a part of their lifestyle. If spanking is used as a consistent disciplinary action within the household, children will grow up believing that spanking is okay and it is okay if they spank their children.
Also, to take note of in the percentages, is the one person who skipped the answer along with the 1.10% who said theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d rather not say if they were spanked and the 14.29% who did not know if their parents were spanked as children. Although skipping the question and not knowing if their parents were spanked adds slight skewness overall I was extremely fascinated with these findings. Because of my research and previous research that has been constantly conducted to keep proving their hypothesis, appears more than true when I also conducted my research that it is most likely for spanking to be used throughout generations. Going further into the data that was collected, are the three central themes that were founded when asking each participant what is their perspective on spanking? The way I chose the themes were first by carefully reading each participants answer and finding key words. After reading each response, I then was able to put them into three central themes because majority of the responses fell under a common word. The first theme founded was that spanking is highly acceptable because it helps shapes behavior, discipline is an educational matter
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that should be taught and therefore should be used as a disciplinary action. The second theme, is that spanking is sometimes necessary depending on whether it is a public or private setting along with where are they spanking the child. Lastly, the third theme was that spanking is outright wrong and should be advocated as a form of abuse. To begin with the first theme, a summary that wraps up about 40% percent of the responses are quoted as, â&#x20AC;&#x153;
These set of quotes were chosen to display the perspective that a handful of the participants felt about spanking. The participants who responded with positive perspectives on spanking, most likely used spanking not as frequently, on the hand or somewhere that causes little pain, or was spanked and believed it guided them to behave better. The second theme as followed, is that spanking is only â&#x20AC;&#x153;sometimesâ&#x20AC;? necessary depending on the environment the parent and child are in at the time of misbehavior and where exactly the parent will spank the child. Many of the participants underlined concepts that direct their understanding of spanking to be noted that it was okay to a certain extent or that spanking was acceptable if it was the last resort. This theme showed participants who knew that there were other alternatives of discipline. Data collected can be summarized as followed from these fellow participants,
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Lastly, the third theme was mainly summarized as spanking being a form of abuse, or that spanking was not effective in any shape or form. These exact participants showed zero positive outcomes of spanking and believed that spanking was harmful in every way. There were exactly 20 participants that fell under this central theme out of 85 who gave their feedback about their perspective on spanking. To summarize the 15 participants who donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t stand for spanking, are summarized from 5 modules,
Another interesting outcome of my survey, is answering the question â&#x20AC;&#x153;Should spanking be banned in the US?â&#x20AC;? As of 2015, 19 countries have made it illegal to spank their children. In those 24 countries, spanking is banned because according to the government spanking is a form of abuse and does not lead to
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positive outcomes in short and long-run terms. As followed, 90 participants participated in answering this question and the results are as followed. I decided to ask this question after receiving feedback because I wanted to see if they had a positive or negative outlook on spanking overall, and if those outlooks would also be portrayed in the banning of spanking as well. The feedback collected is quite outstanding, with “No and only in public…” being added together at a grand total of 78.89%.
To conclude, I ended my survey with a very harsh question. What I mean by this is, after receiving 85 responses on their perspective of spanking and knowing whether or not spanking should be banned, I decided to inform my participants on a few side effects of spanking and gave them a question to answer. The results of this question are outstanding with only 7.69% who believe spanking is still acceptable and those who doubt the harmful side effects because they turned out fine at a 29.67%. Many people had positive views on spanking and believed it should be taught as a form of discipline, but once I stated a few effects that spanking causes their perspective quickly changed.
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Overall, the research conducted was to fill the gap that researchers have not been demonstrated. Most researchers just take note of the harmful side effects instead of informing families that there are harmful side effects, which I tried to portray in my research. My goal was to receive the feedback about people perspective of spanking, and if they knew some of the harmful side effects would they still continue to do so. Lastly, along with my data and analysis, plays a few communication theories and concepts as well which opens a new door for more research in the future.
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Conclusion When starting my research report, my main goal was to discuss the effects of spanking which include short-term and long-term. Although, that was my main focus, after looking further into reports that have been tested on spanking, I realized there was more for me to discuss. Spanking has been a main disciplinary action for many ongoing years and has always been a very controversial topic. Should it be banned, should it not be banned, what are the affects, when is spanking most effective and appropriate to use as a parent? All of these questions are questions many people have struggled with for years when discussing the topic of spanking. I decided to choose spanking because it is not an easy topic to discuss, it is usually sensitive for most people because they do not want people coming into their homes judging them for whether they spank their children or not. So I therefore, redirected my research paper to focus on the effects of spanking, alternatives, and also personal opinions on the use of spanking. I took this route because not everyone uses spanking in the same manner and by this I mean, people either view spanking as a form of abuse or a form to correct childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s behavior. My research I collected was to fill in the missing gaps I believe former researchers have yet to truly engage in. I wanted to look at personal points of views of spanking and to see if people knew some of the effects due to being spanked, would they reconsider spanking their children. I believe my research can go a long ways if it is slightly altered. Researchers and doctors should first lay down the foundation of spanking and discipline for beginning parents so that they are informed on what spanking clearly is by definition. Then they should direct them to know that their parenting skills is up to them and spanking is a form of discipline, but here are some of the effects that have been proven or here are the alternatives. I do wish I could have spoken to more families especially parents who use the form of spanking as discipline, and simply get their perspective. If I did this, it could have been vital to my own understanding and others because spanking is usually guided through generations of families. After speaking with individual families, I
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could have then discussed some of the side effects for on-going spanking to help guide or help shape a better disciplinary foundation for the future. Lastly, my research report is not a report to judge any parents for using spanking as a form of discipline but my goal is to inform them with proven facts and stories that correspond to spanking. I hope in the future my report can be looked at more in-depth so others can learn and teach better ways for disciplining a child. Overall, writing about spanking I was able to engage in the very controversial topic and see all sides of it that still live on until this day.
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Works Cited Bible, NKJV Study Bible. USA: Thomas Nelson, Inc., 1997 Dale, Stan, Mothering. Spanking is an addiction. Winter 93, Issue 69. DelCampo Robert L. and DelCampo Diana S. Taking Sides. Pushkin Publishing: Gulford, Connecticut 1995. Hyman, Irwin A. The Case against Spanking. Jossey-Bass Publishers: San Francisco, CA 1997. Lentini, Jennifer dr. and Knox, Michele PHD “On Spanking” Pediatrics for Parents Vm. 26, Numbers 5 & 6. Olive, M. Foster. Child Abuse and Stress Disorders. New York: InfoBase Publishing, 2007. Park, Alice: “The Long-Term Effects of Spanking” Time 3 May 2010: Vol. 175 issue 17. Straus, Murray A. “Should There Be a Law Banning Spanking of children?” US News Digital Weekly. 9, September 2011: Vol. 3 issue 36. “Viral Video puts focus on beating children.” USA Today,” November 2011. “November 2011 <http:web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detailvid. Nelsen, Jane and Lott, Lyn. Positive Discipline for Teenagers. Prima Publishing: Rockin, CA 1994.
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