Smacking is all of our business

So when it comes to smacking/spanking/corporal punishment/hitting/belting, smackers be warned. The research is not good. As with any debatable topic, opinions vary; from the militant anti-smackers to the "anything in moderation" school of punishment.

Childhood smacks have been linked to everything from anti-social behaviour, drug and alcohol addiction, anxiety disorder, depression in adulthood, predisposition to violence and even lower IQ, just to name a few.

Whichever side of the smacking debate fence you sit on, it is undeniable that we as parents are the role models paving the way for our children's moral and ethical future. Children learn from us. That is indisputable. The extent a smack affects them is debatable.

Child rights campaigner James Garbarino (in his Journal of Child Abuse and Neglect article Reflections of 20 years of Searching) says children need to develop coping mechanisms to deal with everyday life. [Review of JG’s Book The Lost Boys]

"They need role models and cultural support for learning non-violent ways to respond when they are frustrated, angry, or simply want to exert their will. If the adults in their life use assault as a tactic under those conditions, how are they, as young children, supposed to 'know better' – and do better. The prospect of adults hitting kids is frightening to them as they are trying to learn how to manage their lives," Garbarino says.

Children decipher what they observe through imaginative play. They act out what they see mums/dads/ grandmas/grandpas doing. If we can accept this truth then surely, as inherent role models/leaders/adults, we need to evaluate and reassess our disciplinary armoury.

Child expert Murray Straus (Book review) in his article "Spanking teaches short-term lesson, but long-term violence" says we are teaching violence.

"It seems that, instead of being a deterrent, corporal punishment provides an example for children. When parents or teachers hit children for misbehaving, it teaches the child that if someone misbehaves towards them (an everyday event in the lives of children) hitting is a way to correct the problem. Corporal punishment also creates resentment and anger in many children, which further increases the probability of violence," Straus says.

"Spanking does work in the short run. However, the research which shows that spanking works also shows that non-violent methods of discipline work just as well. So there is no need to use corporal punishment. But what about the long-run effect? Parents spank to stop misbehavior and also to 'teach a lesson'. Spanking does teach a lesson, but study after study in the past 40 years provides evidence suggesting, but not proving, that children also learn violence and other antisocial behavior."

Considering the amount of violence a child is bombarded with via TV, film and video games, it is up to caregivers to provide a sanctuary away from our increasingly violent world.

If implications of later violence are not enough to sway the diehard smackers, let's look at its effectiveness. Does it really modify a child's behaviour or is it just a parental stress relief mechanism? Again, the research varies, but the general consensus appears to be the latter.

The American Academy of Paediatrics' position on physical punishment is unequivocal: "Spanking may relieve a parent's frustration for the moment and extinguish the undesirable behavior for a brief time. But it is the way to least effective discipline".