Doubtful Give me links directly to these "studies", how am I supposed to know if these statistics are out of your booty or otherwise.

If 90% of people were spanked as children, surely you'll find a correlation with that for [i]everything[/i]?

[quote]Spanking - striking a child with with an open hand on the buttocks or extremities with the intention of modifying behavior without causing physical injury.[/quote] Accepted. [quote]- Over 90% of American families report having used spanking as a means of discipline at some time.[/quote] Accepted [quote]- There is 93% agreement in studies that spanking is harmful for children. It leads to more antisocial behavior during childhood, increased aggression, spousal abuse, and child abuse in adulthood.[/quote] Pain=harm. However, to say that it leads to the problems you listed I think is a bit premature. I would like to see these studies and how these scientists came to their conclusions. I have know plenty of people who were spanked as children and they have not exhibited a single behavior that was listed. [quote]- Children who are slapped and spanked are twice as likely to develop alcohol addiction and other drugs problems.[/quote] How did they eliminate other factors? Alcoholism exists on both sides of my family, which means the odds are against me if I start drinking. According to this study, combined with my family history with alcohol, I should be laying on a park bench right now. The reality is I am three weeks away from obtaining an internship with the District Attorney's office in my home state. Sure, I drink, but very seldom, and very little (2 bottles of beer at most at a frequency of maybe 1 time out of 2 months). [quote]- A study conducted at the University of New Hampshire found that spanking can significantly damage a child's mental capabilities, and can result in a lower IQ later in life. The research team also looked at corporal punishment practices in 32 countries and found a lower average IQ in countries where spanking was more prevalent.[/quote] IQ of 149. I think I'm fine [quote]- Another study indicated that corporal punishment slows the development of mental ability, particularly in children aged 2 to 6. It is dose-dependent. Children that are hit more often fall farther behind in cognitive development.[/quote] Well no wonder!!! Spanking a child at the age of 2?! Come on!! At two years old the child can barely comprehend right and wrong if at all. [quote]- It is cyclical. Adults who were spanked often as children perceived it as acceptable, and frequently spanked their own children. In turn, their children advocated for spanking, and preferred aggressive conflict management with siblings and peers.[/quote] Then the parents are not doing their jobs. Admittedly I tried that on my younger sister, once. Never again. [quote]- Children who experienced corporal punishment are more likely to experience sexual problems later in life, such as... 1. Engaging in risky sexual behavior 2. A greater chance of verbally or physically coercing a sexual partner 3. Engaging in masochistic sex[/quote] 1. Have always wrapped up. 2. Coercion is a huge turn off. A willing partner is the best partner. 3. Just...no. [quote]- Children, aged 2 to 3, living in punitive homes scored almost 40% higher on a scale of aggressive behavior, compared to children in non-punitive homes. Children 8 to 9 years old scored 83% higher.[/quote] The 2-3 yoa thing was addressed earlier. As for the 8-9 yoa part, if it was a continued process from the the age of 2, then I will concur with that statement. My parents did not start spanking me until I was 4, when they could sit down and discuss the "why" after I cried. [quote]- Corporal punishment is associated with increased levels of aggression, and is a predictor of delinquency, violence, and crime later in life. It is also a risk factor for child abuse.[/quote] I guess that's why I joined the military and now what to go into law enforcement. Sure. I'm a delinquent. I usually abhor violence unless it is to protect a life. As it is clear OP considers spanking to equate child abuse, the last point does not hold much water. [quote]- Little is known about how spanking inhibits cognitive development. One possibility is that parents that hit their children are less likely to use reasoning with them. Reasoning is good for development.[/quote] And yet the study is sure that it happens...why? Sounds like conclusion without evidence to me. My parents used a combination of reason and spanking. I was always told why and we talked about how to avoid being spanked in the future. [quote]- All 20 (then) recent studies associated corporal punishment with an increased probability of mental health problems.[/quote] Such as...? How many of those mental health issues were genetic? [quote]- 12 of 13 (then) recent studies found corporal punishment associated with a higher probability of delinquent and antisocial behavior.[/quote] Addressed already. [quote]- 4/5 of studies found a relation between childhood corporal punishment and later adult criminal behavior.[/quote] Addressed already [quote]Now listen. I used to accept the idea of hitting your children. As a child, I was struck many times (granted, my mother suffered from [i]severe[/i] mental health problems).[/quote] It sounds like your mother was in no fit shape to utilize spanking anyway. [quote]However, the evidence suggests that striking your children has severe consequences.[/quote] Depends on how it is done, if it is the sole form of discipline, or if it is used in conjunction with other methods, how early one starts, etc. [quote]Furthermore, there's the moral issue. I wouldn't strike a stranger. I wouldn't strike my neighbor. I wouldn't even strike my sociopath identical twin brother. Why, then, would I ever hit a child, let alone [i]my[/i] child?[/quote] Moral relativity. Yes it is generally considered wrong to assault a stranger, your neighbor, a sociopath twin brother, or a strange child. [quote]I don't actually have children of my own, but I [i]definitely[/i] plan on having some (it's hard to find love in my state, since I'm not LDS). It's important to me that I can teach my kids legitimate moral reasoning, rather than the overarching rule of, "Obey authority or get hit."[/quote] You still can teach your child moral reasoning with spanking. My parents did. I was only spanked if my actions would have brought harm to others. Later my parents explained to me why my actions were wrong and how it could hurt people. Now, obeying authority is not such a bad thing. Authority is there to enforce rules that are generally agreed upon by society. Without authority, there would be anarchy and that can lead to chaos. [quote]There's a frightening lack of moral reasoning in society. When asked why people shouldn't steal from others, only 10% of those polled drew on abstract moral reasoning to explain why stealing is wrong. The other 90% said something akin to, "Because you'll get punished."[/quote] I'd like to see where that figure came from. [quote][b]TL;DR[/b] - Evidence suggests that spanking only increases behavioral problems in the short term, and will escalate in greater problems in the future. It's more important to teach your kid how to decide between what is right and wrong - moral and immoral. The rule, "Obey authority or get hit," is not an example of moral reasoning.[/quote] "Suggest" is a far cry from "conclusively proves." There are other factors to consider rather than just spanking. It is important to teach kids right from wrong, but it is equally important for parents to enforce good behavior as the child grows. Once the child knows right from wrong, they need to learn about consequences. Every choice we make has consequences, good and bad. The child needs to learn that bad choices have bad consequences.

Children don't understand "moral reasoning." It's proven that their concept of "morals" are based around cause and effect situations at a young age. Punishment works because it teaches children that their actions have consequences and that's something that they can understand. Young children don't avoid doing bad things because they're morally wrong or socially unacceptable, they avoid doing bad things because they don't want to be punished. That being said, spanking or any other form of corporeal punishment should only be used as a last resort and never on a child too young or any child in their tween years or beyond. Punishment for children at an older age shouldn't be corporeal in any way whatsoever. As children get older they can more easily understand the moral reasons behind not doing something bad. As such, they should be taught why whatever they did was wrong alongside being punished. However, one should take note that avoiding punishment usually remains a big reason behind a child or teenager's avoidance of bad behavior.

I'm recycling old material here, but it's still relevant. I got spanked as a kid and now I suffer from the disorder of having respect for others. Funny, I'm not an alcoholic, I don't have any drug addictions and I actually thank my father every day for whooping my ass when it was needed.

Great to see comments from kids that do not have kids. Its also amazing to see that society has gotten to this point in world history with a long track record of spanking children if they continue behavior which is unacceptable. There is a big difference between child abuse and spanking.

[quote] - Children who experienced corporal punishment are more likely to experience sexual problems later in life, such as... -Engaging in risky sexual behavior -A greater chance of verbally or physically coercing a sexual partner -Engaging in masochistic sex [/quote] I gotta admit, I was spanked as a kid, and I kind of like getting roughed up a little as an adult. I never really thought of it as a "problem" though. My wife knows to leave the marks where no-one can see them lol.

Why is it wrong to hit children? How is your morality superior if you don't hit your kids? Kids are people if you don't explain that they face punishment for bad things they'll end up in a lot of shit later in life, while spanking a child may not be the best punishment it is still clearly a good way of making them realizing that they will have to face the consequences of those negative actions.

You wouldn't hit your girlfriend right? So why hit your child. It's just wrong. Abuse is a act of harmful aggression to anyone or thing so if you smack your child intentionally then guess what? [spoiler]Child abuse! Wow[/spoiler]

As a byproduct of physical abuse, I strongly stress the issue about teaching reason to children rather then incorporating physical violence into their learning curve. I'm not saying spanking is totally bad, (a little pat on the behind never hurt anyone), but using it as a default punishment is a far cry from the opportunity teach children as to why they are being punished in the first place. There are other avenues of discipline so long as the child understands why he/she is being punished and the reasoning behind it. Btw, I disprove the cyclical nature of abuse begets abuse as I have yet to physically harm my children despite being physically and mentally harmed myself.