Template:Short description Template:About Template:Redirect
Spanking is a form of corporal punishment involving the act of striking, with either the palm of the hand or an implement, the buttocks of a person to cause physical pain. The term spanking broadly encompasses the use of either the hand or implement, though the use of certain implements can also be characterized as other, more specific types of corporal punishment such as belting, caning, paddling and slippering.
Some parents spank children in response to undesired behavior.<ref name="Zolotor2014">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Adults more commonly spank boys than girls both at home and in school.<ref name=Primordial/> Some countries have outlawed the spanking of children in every setting, including homes, schools, and penal institutions,<ref name="States which">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> while others permit it when done by a parent or guardian.
Research shows that spanking is ineffective and harmful,<ref name="Zolotor2014" /><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> leading to increased aggression, mental health issues,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> and decreased obedience in children, prompting medical organizations to strongly discourage its use in favor of healthier discipline strategies.<ref name="AAPSege2018" /><ref name="RCPCHPositionStatement" /><ref name="RACPPositionStatement" />
TerminologyEdit
In American English, dictionaries define spanking as being administered with either the open hand or an implement such as a paddle.<ref>American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language: "Spank: To slap on the buttocks with a flat object or with the open hand, as for punishment."</ref> Thus, the standard form of corporal punishment in US schools (use of a paddle) is often referred to as a spanking. In North America, the word "spanking" has often been used as a synonym for an official paddling in school,<ref>E.g. "Corporal punishment — spanking or paddling the student — may be used as a discipline management technique .... The instrument to be used in administering corporal punishment shall be approved by the principal or designee".Texas Association of School Boards – Standard Code of Conduct wording. Template:Webarchive</ref> and sometimes even as a euphemism for the formal corporal punishment of adults in an institution.<ref>See e.g. Evidence of Colonel G. Headly Basher, Deputy Minister for Reform Institutions, Ontario, Joint Committee of the Senate and House of Commons on Capital and Corporal Punishment and Lotteries, Canada, 1953–55.</ref>
In British English, most dictionaries define "spanking" as being given only with the open hand.<ref>Oxford English Dictionary: "Spank: To slap or smack (a person, esp. a child) with the open hand." Collins English Dictionary: "Spank: To slap or smack with the open hand, esp. on the buttocks."</ref> In the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand, the word "smacking" is generally used in preference to "spanking" when describing striking with an open hand, rather than with an implement. Whereas a spanking is invariably administered to the bottom, a "smacking" is less specific and may refer to slapping the child's hands, arms, or legs as well as its bottom.<ref>Oxford English Dictionary: "Smack: To strike (a person, part of the body, etc.) with the open hand or with something having a flat surface; to slap. Also spec. to chastise (a child) in this manner and fig."</ref>
Effect on childrenEdit
The main reasons parents give for spanking their children are to make children more compliant and to promote better behavior, especially to put a stop to their children's apparent aggressive behaviors. Template:Citation needed However, research has shown that spanking (or any other form of corporal punishment) is associated with the opposite effect.<ref name="Zolotor2014" /><ref name="AAPSege2018" /> When adults physically punish children, the children tend to obey parents less with time and develop more aggressive behaviors, including toward other children.<ref name="Zolotor2014" /> This increase in aggressive behavior appears to reflect the child's perception that hitting is the way to deal with anger and frustration.<ref name="Zolotor2014" />
There are also many adverse physical, mental, and emotional effects correlated with spanking and other forms of corporal punishment, including various physical injuries, increased anxiety, depression, and antisocial behavior.<ref name="Zolotor2014" /><ref name="Development">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="MacMillan2017">Template:Cite journal</ref> Adults who were spanked during their childhood are more likely to abuse their children and spouse.<ref name="Zolotor2014" />
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH), and the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) all recommend that no child should be spanked and instead favor the use of effective, healthy forms of discipline.<ref name="Zolotor2014" /><ref name="AAPSege2018" /><ref name="RCPCHPositionStatement">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="RACPPositionStatement">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Additionally, the AAP recommends that primary care providers (e.g., pediatricians and family medicine physicians) begin to discuss parents' discipline methods no later than nine months of age and consider initiating such discussions by age 3–4 months.<ref name="Zolotor2014" /> By eight months of age, 5% of parents report spanking and 5% report starting to spank by age three months.<ref name="Zolotor2014" /> The AAP also recommends that pediatricians discuss effective discipline strategies and counsel parents about the ineffectiveness of spanking and the risks of harmful effects associated with the practice to minimize harm to children and guide parents.<ref name="AAPSege2018" /><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Although parents and other advocates of spanking often claim that spanking is necessary to promote child discipline, studies have shown that parents tend to apply physical punishment inconsistently and tend to spank more often when they are angry or under stress.<ref name="Guidance">Template:Cite journal</ref> The use of corporal punishment by parents increases the likelihood that children will suffer physical abuse,<ref name="Zolotor2014" /> and most documented cases of physical abuse in Canada and the United States begin as disciplinary spankings.<ref name="Gershoff2010">Template:Cite journal</ref> If a child is frequently spanked, this form of corporal punishment tends to become less effective at modifying behavior over time (also known as extinction).<ref name="Zolotor2014" /> In response to the decreased effectiveness of spanking, some parents increase the frequency or severity of spanking or use an object.<ref name="Zolotor2014" />
Alternatives to spankingEdit
Parents may spank less – or not at all – if they have learned effective discipline techniques since many view spanking as a last resort to discipline their children.<ref name="AAPSege2018" /> There are many alternatives to spanking and other forms of corporal punishment:
- Time-in, increasing praise, and special time to promote desired behaviors
- Time outs to take a break from escalating misbehavior
- Positive reinforcement of rewarding desirable behavior with a star, sticker, or treat
- Implementing non-physical punishment (psychology) in which an unpleasant consequence follows misbehavior, such as taking away a privilege
- Ignoring low-level misbehaviors and prioritizing attention on more significant forms of misbehavior
- Avoiding the opportunity for misbehavior and thus the need for corrective discipline.<ref name="Zolotor2014" />
In the homeEdit
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}
Parents commonly spank their children as a form of corporal punishment in the United States; however, support for this practice appears to be declining amongst U.S. parents.<ref name="Zolotor2014"/><ref name="AAPSege2018">Template:Cite journal</ref> Spanking is typically done with one or more slaps on the child's buttocks with a bare hand, although, not uncommonly, various objects are used to spank children, such as a hairbrush or wooden spoon.<ref name="Zolotor2014"/> Historically, adults have spanked boys more than girls.<ref name=Primordial>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Elder">Template:Cite journal</ref> In the United States, adults commonly spank toddlers the most.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
In schoolsEdit
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}
Corporal punishment, usually delivered with an implement (such as a paddle or cane) rather than with the open hand, used to be a common form of school discipline in many countries, but it is now banned in most of the Western World.
Corporal punishment, such as caning, remains a common form of discipline in schools in several Asian and African countries, even in countries in which this practice has been deemed illegal such as India and South Africa.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In these cultures it is referred to as "caning" and not "spanking." The Supreme Court of the United States in 1977 held that the paddling of school students was not per se unlawful.<ref>Ingraham v. Wright, 97, S.Ct. 1401 (1977).</ref> However, 33 states have now banned paddling in public schools. It is still common in some schools in the South, and more than 167,000 students were paddled in the 2011–2012 school year in American public schools.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite news</ref> Students can be physically punished from kindergarten to the end of high school, meaning that even adults who have reached the age of majority are sometimes spanked by school officials.<ref name="corpun">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Several medical, pediatric, or psychological societies have issued statements opposing all forms of corporal punishment in schools, citing such outcomes as poorer academic achievements, increases in antisocial behaviors, injuries to students, and an unwelcoming learning environment. They include the American Medical Association,<ref name="NCACPS list">"H-515.995 Corporal Punishment in Schools". American Medical Association.</ref> the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry,<ref name=AACAP>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> the American Psychoanalytic Association,<ref name="APSAPositionStatement">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP),<ref name="pmid6599942">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="pmid9521967">Template:Cite journal</ref> the Society for Adolescent Medicine,<ref name=SAM2003>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="pmid1498122">Template:Cite journal</ref> the American Psychological Association,<ref>"Corporal Punishment". Council Policy Manual. American Psychological Association. 1975.</ref> the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="pmid12949335">Template:Cite journal</ref> the Royal College of Psychiatrists,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> the Canadian Paediatric Society<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> and the Australian Psychological Society,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> as well as the United States' National Association of School Psychologists and National Association of Secondary School Principals.<ref name="NASSPCPPositionStatement">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="NASPPositionStatement">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Adult spankingEdit
Most spanking performed between adults in the 21st century within the Western world is erotic spanking.Template:Citation needed
Within the early 20th century, American men spanking their wives and girlfriends was often seen as an acceptable form of discipline. It was a common trope in American films, from the earliest days up through the 1960s, and was often used to allude to romance between the man and woman.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In the early 21st century, adherents of a subculture known as Christian domestic discipline have on a literalist interpretation of the Bible justified spanking as a form of acceptable punishment of women by their husbands.<ref name="Snyder-Hall2">Template:Cite journal</ref> Critics describe such practices as a form of domestic abuse.<ref name="Zadrozny2">Template:Cite news</ref>
A few countries have a judicial corporal punishment for adults.
Ritual spanking traditionsEdit
AsiaEdit
On the first day of the lunar Chinese New Year holidays, a week-long 'Spring Festival', the most important festival for Chinese people all over the world, thousands of Chinese visit the Taoist Dong Lung Gong temple in Tungkang to go through the century-old ritual to get rid of bad luck. Men traditionally receive spankings and women get whipped, with the number of strokes to be administered (always lightly) by the temple staff being decided in either case by the god Wang Ye and by burning incense and tossing two pieces of wood, after which all go home happily, believing their luck will improve.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
EuropeEdit
On Easter Monday, there is a Slavic tradition of spanking girls and young ladies with woven willow switches (Czech: pomlázka; Slovak: korbáč) and dousing them with water.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
In Slovenia, there is a jocular tradition that anyone who succeeds in climbing to the top of Mount Triglav receives a spanking or birching.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In Poland there is a tradition named Pasowanie, which is celebrated on the 18th birthday. The birthday person receives eighteen smacks with the belt from the guests at the birthday party.<ref>Dorota Zawadzka krytykuje zwyczaj bicia pasem na osiemnastce - Dziecko. (in Polish). 8 june 2021.</ref>
North AmericaEdit
Birthday spanking is a tradition within some parts of the United States. Within the tradition an individual (commonly, though not exclusively, a child) upon their birthday receives, typically corresponding to their age, a number of spanks. Characteristically these spankings are playful and are administered in such a fashion so the recipient receives no or only minor discomfort.
See alsoEdit
- UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
- Corporal punishment
- Erotic spanking
- Caning in Singapore
- Easter whip
ReferencesEdit
Notes Template:Reflist