Child corporal punishment: SpankingResults of studies during 1985 & 1986
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Many studies into the effects of spanking have proven to be highly unreliable
because they are largely based on the researchers' interpretation of children's
behavior. Study bias is a common phenomenon among behavioral studies in which the researchers have a
committed position and are required to judge behavior. However, there are a few studies that
largely bypass such judgment. The
effects of research bias are minimal or non-existent. Two such studies
conducted during 1985 and 1986 were:
1985: Study of teenage corporal punishment & adult depression:M.A. Straus of the Family Research Laboratory of the University of New Hampshire
analyzed data from a 1985 National Family Violence Survey. He
reported this in his book "Beating the devil out of
them: Corporal punishment in American families and its effects on
children." 1 He observed:
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Serious adult depression is a widespread problem. It affects from 1 to
6% of the population. |
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There is little empirical research on the link between childhood
corporal punishment and depression. One study "suggests that the
perceptual blinders are a result of the almost universal early experience
with corporal punishment."
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An analysis of ten of the leading child psychology textbooks showed
that they devoted only an average of only half a page to corporal punishment.
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He quotes a book by P. Greven which suggests that |
"depression often is a delayed response
to the suppression of childhood anger...from being physically hit and
hurt..." [by parents]...Melancholy and depression have been
persistent themes in the family history, religious experience, and
emotional lives of Puritans, evangelicals, fundamentalists and
Pentecostals for centuries....The first assaults on children's bodies and
spirits generally commences before conscious memory can recall them later.
The unconscious thus becomes the repository of rage, resistance, and desire
for revenge that small children feel when being struck by the adults they
love...the ancient angers persist while the adult conscience directs rage
inward upon the self." 2
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The National Family Violence Survey involved 6,002 adults
respondents, including adults who were living with a spouse, living common
law, or a single parent living with one or more children. They were
asked the question: "Thinking about when you yourself were a teenager, about how
often would you say your mother or stepmother used corporal punishment,
like slapping or hitting you?" A second question was asked concerning
their father or stepfather. About half of the subjects reported memories
of having been hit during adolescence. Respondents were asked five
questions to find out if they had been suffering from sadness, depression,
feelings of worthlessness, hopelessness, feelings that nothing was
worthwhile, or suicidal ideation during the past year.
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"For the men [in the study], there is a clear tendency for depressive
symptoms to increase with each increment of corporal punishment. For the women
in this sample, the slope starts out even more steeply than for the men, but
then declines for the highest categories of corporal punishment....the
significant effect of corporal punishment occurs despite controlling for
possible confounding with the five other variables -- SES, gender of the child,
husband to wife violence, excessive drinking and witnessing violence between
parents."
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The data showed that "with increasing amounts of corporal
punishment [during teen years], ...thinking about suicide [in adulthood]
increased."
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1986 to 1990: Study of corporal punishment and child anti-social behavior:
The Family Research Laboratory of the University of New Hampshire conducted a
large study involving over 3,000 mothers of 3 to 5 year old children during the late
1980's. The women were interviewed in 1986, 1988 and 1990. The found that 63% of the
mothers had spanked their child at least once during the previous week. Among those that
spanked, they hit their children a little over 3 times per week, on average. The
researchers found
that the children which were spanked the most as 3 to 5 year olds exhibited higher levels
of anti-social behavior when observed 2 and 4 years later. This included higher levels of
hitting siblings, hitting other children in school, defying parents, and ignoring parental
rules. Dr. Murray Straus, the co-director of the Laboratory noted how ironic it is that
the behaviors for which parents spank children are liable to get worse as a result of the
spanking.
1986 to 1990: Corporal punishment and child IQ:The Family Research Laboratory
of the University of New Hampshire released a study which showed that the more
often a child is spanked, the lower they score in IQ tests four years later. Their paper
was described by researcher Dr. Murray Straus at the World Congress of Sociology
on 1998-AUG-1 in Montreal, Quebec. They examined 960 American children who were
between one and four years old between 1986 and 1990. The researchers do not attribute the
lower IQ tests directly to physical injuries sustained during the spanking. Rather, they
believe that parents who do not spank are forced to use more reasoning and explaining
while disciplining the child. "Some parents think this is a waste of time, but
research shows that such verbal parent-child interactions enhance the child's cognitive
ability." Thirteen percent of the parents studied reported spanking their children
seven or more
times a week. The average was 3.6 spankings per week. Twenty-seven percent reported using no physical punishment. Those
children who were spanked frequently averaged 98 on their IQ tests -- a below
average score. Those who were rarely
or never spanked scored 102 -- an above-average score. The four point average
decline in IQ among the spanked students is sufficient to have a negative
functional effect on those children. Ms. Dawn Walker, executive director
of the Canadian Institute of Child Health commented:
"We know that
children who are under the threat of violence or aggression develop a fight-or-flight
response system that has an impact on creativity and imagination, both of which could
influence their IQ...Children need discipline but not hitting."
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References used:The following information sources were used to prepare and update the above
essay. The hyperlinks are not necessarily still active today.
-
 M.A. Straus, Corporal punishment of children and adult depression
and suicidal ideation," Chapter 5 of: "Beating the devil out of
them: Corporal punishment in American families and its effects on
children," New Brunswick, (2000), Page 60 to 77. Online at:
http://pubpages.unh.edu/ This is a PDF file. You may require software to read it. Software can be obtained free from:
 Read
reviews or order this book safely from Amazon.com online book store
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P. Greven, "Spare the child: The religious roots of physical punishment
and the psychological impact of physical abuse," Knopf,
(1991)
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Jane Gadd, "Spanked children suffer intellectually,"
The Globe and Mail, Toronto ON, 1998-JUL-30
Copyright © 1995 to 2009 by Ontario Consultants on
Religious Tolerance
Latest update and review: 2009-MAY-30
Author: B.A. Robinson
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