Physical punishment is not the solution

“Discipline is the foundation upon which all success is built. Lack of discipline

inevitably leads to failure. (Jim Rohn)” All children need disciplining while growing up as it

serves the base of how they form their values and beliefs. But there is one thing that should not

be done. Children should not receive physical punishment for the sake of discipline. physical

punishment is a form of abuse that can extinguish the behavior but on a temporary basis, and

what every parent seeks is for their behavior to change permanently.

First, though some argue that physical punishment works, it actually brings long term

and negative consequences. Not only will the child have personal issues that might haunt them

forever, the relationship between the parent and child may also be affected. According to a study

called “The State of Research on the Effects of Physical Punishment”, physical punishment is

associated with increased child aggression, antisocial behavior, lower intellectual achievement,

poorer quality of parent-child relationships, mental health problems, and diminished moral

internalization. These long-term effects are not something that we could just ignore. Discipline is

supposed to be something that makes a child better. Doing physical punishments does the

opposite.

Another reason is that keeping a positive environment makes more progress than

physical punishment. Children naturally copy things that happen around them. If a child is raised

in a friendly environment, chances are they would grow up like this too. On the contrary, if a

child grows up receiving physical punishment, he/she might see this as a normal thing and

associates it to something that is needed to get their way. As claimed by a 2002 meta-analysis of

27 studies, physical punishment corresponds to interactions where violence is used to exert

power over another person like bullying, partner abuse, and so on. Explaining things using calm
words and action makes them respond better. Praising them when they do something good also

provides more positive reinforcement. To prove this point, according to urbanchildinstitute.org,

an enriching and stimulating home environment enriches healthy growth and brain development

by giving a child love, emotional support, and opportunities for learning and exploration.

Lastly, a child needs to know why bad behavior is bad. Physical punishment does not

give this to children. What physical punishment gives is just pain and scars. This method does

not teach children why the thing they are doing is bad. Talk about the problem, and not just start

hurting them. If children get the chance to understand what they did wrong, they also get the

chance to enrich their brains. Physical punishment just calls on fear and children will avoid

trying to reason and end up not understanding why.

To sum it all up, it is a good thing to discipline children, but remember to do it

healthily. Physical punishment just brings long-term negative effects, and children do not learn

the reason why bad behavior is bad. On the contrary, positive reinforcements from parents

provide a more enjoyable time for both the parent and child during the discipline process. The

process of discipline and behavior correction must be based on dialogue, understanding, analysis

and reflection. Violence generates more violence and will never be the right way.