Spanking Linked to Mental Illness, Says Study

These kinds of studies are far from absolutes. The ideas held by those enacting the study invariably infect the study. For example, in their introduction, they appear to equate spanking with abuse almost as a given, however, I disagree with this and see no reason to accept this as valid. Admittedly, the study bored me so I stopped reading, but I did not see any attempt to define physical abuse as opposed to non abusive spanking - yet, without such a qualifying statement, the study is almost worthless to my mind. They did however, mention a range of physical acts - throwing things, pushing etc., with spanking, that may not be legitimate as opposed to abusive.

Also, the way in which a child reacts to forms of punishment is as varied as the number of people that have been children - ie., it is an absolute variable.

Further, a child that is not punished in some way, does not grow up a high functioning adult from what I have seen - some of the worst human beings I have met grew up in families where they were considered to be, for the most part, always in the right and never deserving of punishment.

The use of physical punishment should be appropriate, and should not be the sole form of punishment. However, it should be an option.

Very logically and well said. Thank You!

Why do people automatically underestimate kids? I understood instintively that my mom slapped me for my protection. I reasoned it in my heart,..as opposed to her loving ways, and treatment of me otherwise.

At what age?

My earliest memory of her slapping me was around 2 or so...But I always just 'knew' it was out of love.
It was never a hard slap. I think it hurt my feelings more than anything; but I related that pain with what I was being told not to do.

I don't want you to feel like I'm doubting you but I have to ask, are you sure that you knew it at the time? Or did you develop that sense and retroactively apply it to being slapped when you were 2?

I have no memories earlier than 4 years old that I'm aware of and even that memory didn't have a whole lot of insight.

Well of course I didn't mentally articulate at that age; but I most certainly put it together,..her actions when teaching as opposed to her loving and warm way otherwise.

Well of course, I was just curious if you knew that you knew that at the time. Or did your brain just merge the knowledge with the memory? You know what I mean?

Like, your best friend blows you off and you're pissed off at her, but then you find out that her sister died the night before and you forgive her. How could you not? But...when you replay the memory 10 years down the road, the memory of the sister's death imposes itself on the memory of your friend blowing you off, so you remember it emotionally differently.

I'm not too sure that made any sense at all.

I see what you mean..I had to think about that for a few moments...

Yes, I do believe I knew at the time; for the simple fact that even afterwards, I would, even though my feelings were still hurt, seek out her attention and company. I knew she loved me. My feelings were hurt...but it wasn't a 'fear' of her; like when an uncle came after me once...I avoided him like the plague after that. lol

Yeah...you're not going to like me saying this (and I don't mean anything by it) but that's what children do to parents who abuse them. All I mean is, "that reaction doesn't necessarily mean that you understood."

The most important part IMO is that you weren't damaged by it.

To be honest I didn't know about this study. I don't know if I can completely agree with it though. I had a few spankings, but not too seriously. I know that when parents abuse their children it can lead to mental issues in the future. I don't know any other methods besides the small spankings, slap on the wrist, "talking to" or the useless and traditional time-outs.

These studies are usually stupid and biased. It's not the action, but the attitude that scars. Your kids will be just fine if you spank them, as long as you're not chasing them down yelling and swearing.

I understand that's how it can be also, for kids who are abused...It wasn't the case at all for me though.

I guess it all comes down to the parent and the child's particular personality; based on that, what the parent feels is the appropriate teaching method for them.
A smack on the hand, or a firm voice to hurt their feelings,... I feel, is just fine...Can prevent a lot of possible catastrophes too.

And I agree with that. Just, in light of what some of the others were indicating, I thought I'd ask.

I understand what you are saying and am not saying that there should not be consequences, but the consequences should be somehow related to the crime. Spanking rarely is. Rarely. Can't make curfew, sorry, can't be trusted to go out without an adult. Refuse to clean your room, anything I pick up for you will be lost to you for a while (or perhaps permanently, depends). Can't stay within the boundaries of our yard (i.e. out of the road), sorry, no outdoor play for you. You'll sit inside while the other children play outside. Spanking just does not in my opinion communicate the same message. Kids can and do understand when their behaviors lead to logical consequences. They see the connection, even very young children, and they start to learn the actual reasons behind a parent's rulings. With spanking they just figure you are trying to be mean and keep them from having fun, and as other's have pointed out, what we find is that they avoid doing the behavior in front of the punisher, but find all that much more fun in the exact same behavior outside of the reach of that person. However, with consequences that are connected to the behavior, you are more likely to see a child avoid that behavior, regardless of the presence of the punisher. Is this a wide sweeping generalization? Yes. Duh. It has to be. You can not find an all the time in every situation result where human beings are concerned. What you find is more times than not type results. Can your child be the exception? Yes, it is possible. However, just assuming your child is the exception and then doing what you want is not the same as showing that your child is the exception.