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Spanking and Child Outcomes

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Spanking and Child Outcomes

Introduction

For many years, the act of spanking a kid as a form of punishment has been universally

accepted. Yet, as society's knowledge of child development and psychology has developed, so

has our perspective on spanking as a form of discipline. Recent times have seen a rise in the

debate regarding the practice of slapping children as parents question its efficacy and possible

harm to the young. Although some believe that spanking is an effective means of resolving

behavioral issues and instilling a sense of right and wrong in children, others claim that it may

lead to more severe problems down the road, such as hostility and poor academic performance.

Against this background of divergent viewpoints and research, Elizabeth T. Gershoff and

Andrew Grogan-Kaylor have compiled a meta-analysis of the literature on the effects of

spanking on children. Importantly, their primary objective is to give an overview of the research

that is both complete and up-to-date to assist in informing policymakers and parents about the

subject matter. Moreover, the timing of this piece could not be better considering the recent

discussion about the appropriateness of using physical discipline while raising children. Since

the practice of spanking is increasingly outlawed worldwide, it is crucial to examine the effects

of this kind of physical punishment on children and identify alternatives that are both more

effective and less damaging. As a result, the authors want to add to the continuing conversation

by providing a comprehensive and nuanced overview of the studies examining the relationship

between spanking and children's development.

Main Concepts

The paper examines how physical punishment affects children's mental health, behavior,

and thinking ability. The authors describe spanking as "the use of physical force with the goal of
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causing a kid to suffer discomfort but not harm to correct or control the child's conduct"

(Gershoff & Grogan-Kaylor, 2016, p. 55). Notably, the authors contend that even though

physical punishment, like spanking, may be beneficial in the short term, it may have adverse

effects on the growth and development of children in the long run.

Research Questions

This article's primary focus is on researching the answer to the research question, "What

is the link between spanking and child outcomes?" The purpose of this article was for the writers

to compile and analyze the findings of previous research on the topic of spanking children and its

effects on many aspects of a child's development, including their cognitive abilities, behaviors,

and their mental health. The authors also aimed to investigate possible moderators of this

association, such as the kid's age, gender, ethnicity, the frequency and intensity of spanking, and

the number of times the child was spanked.

The authors of this study didn't just answer the central question of the study; they also

looked into several other related topics. For example, the researchers looked at whether or not

various forms of physical punishment—such as open-hand vs. object spanking—might be linked

to different results for children. They also looked into the long-term impacts of spanking,

including how it affected behavioral patterns and mental health in adulthood.

The authors also looked into possible confounding factors to see what effect they might

have on the link between spanking and child outcomes. One of the things that they looked at was

how different parenting styles and the dynamics of the family affect the way that spanking is

related to the consequences for the children. Also, they thought about how various forms of

spanking children might have other effects on them depending on their culture and society.
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In general, the study questions in this article are long and cover a wide range of issues related to

spanking as a form of physical punishment.

Methods

The authors did a meta-analysis examining the relationship between physical punishment

and how children develop. Their search involved a careful look at 75 studies that had been

finished and published before June 1, 2014, in which more than 160,927 kids took part. The

authors used a model with random effects to evaluate the overall impact of spanking on

children's outcomes. Furthermore, they divided the sample into subgroups to look for moderating

variables such as the child's age, gender, ethnicity, and culture and the frequency and intensity of

punishment. The authors also used sensitivity analyses to evaluate the validity of their results and

spot any possible outliers.

The authors did a thorough search of multiple databases like PsycINFO, Medline, and

ERIC to find the papers that would be included in the meta-analysis. Notably, these included

research looking at how spanking affected children's cognitive abilities, behavioral patterns, and

mental health results, among other outcomes. The researchers disregarded studies that did not

contain a control group or were reliant on self-reported data.

The authors did a thorough meta-analysis that took into account things like the quality of

each study and the possibility of bias. They did sensitivity studies to see if their results held up

under different conditions and to check for the impact of outliers. The authors did a lot of

subgroup analyses to see how other factors changed the link between spanking and how the child

turned out. For instance, they looked at how spanking affected children of various ages (from

babies and preschoolers to teenagers). Furthermore, they analyzed the differences in spanking's
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effect on boys and girls and explored the role culture plays in mediating the link between

physical punishment and negative consequences for children.

When taken as a whole, the authors' meta-analysis is a careful and thorough look at the

research on spanking and how it affects children. The use of a random-effects model and

subgroup analyses made it possible to do a thorough investigation of the moderating variables.

These tools also helped find possible study topics for the future. The findings are solid and

reliable because the authors' method for evaluating quality and looking into the possibility of

bias was comprehensive.

Findings

The author's meta-analysis shows that spanking and other forms of physical punishment

are linked to bad outcomes for children. The research found that spanking is associated with

lower IQ, more behavioral issues, and psychological distress. Scientists found that spanking had

a negligible effect on how kids turned out, which means it affected how they grew up. The fact

that the destructive results of spanking have been found over and over again in many different

types of studies (cross-sectional and longitudinal) and cultural settings suggests that they are

valid for everyone.

Also, the authors' subgroup analyses showed that the harmful effects of spanking were

more evident in children who were hit often and hard and in kids who were hit at a younger age.

Importantly, this shows that the frequency and intensity of spanking and the age at which kids

are spanked are significant variables that determine the detrimental effect spanking has on child

outcomes. Also, the authors couldn't find any evidence that spanking had a different effect on

how a child turned out depending on their culture. Thus, this shows that spanking is bad for

everyone, no matter what race or culture they come from.

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Major takeaways from the authors' research should be considered by caregivers,

professionals, and legislators. In particular, the results show that corporal punishment, more

often known as "spanking," should not be regarded as an efficient and productive form of

discipline and that many other types of discipline should be pursued instead. The results of this

study underscore the need for spreading information about the detrimental effects of spanking on

children's growth and development to the general population. Last but not least, decision-makers

in public policy should seriously explore the possibility of passing legislation that would make

the use of physical punishment, like spanking, less permissible.

Applications

The authors come to the conclusion that physical punishment, like spanking, doesn't work

and makes kids' lives worse. They suggest that parents, professionals, and politicians look into

more appropriate and less harmful ways to punish children. The authors argue that rather than

resorting to physical punishment, parents would be better off using tactics like positive

reinforcement, time-outs, and other types of non-violent discipline. The authors also suggest that

legislators should take into consideration the possibility of passing laws and regulations that

encourage constructive parenting and prohibit the use of corporal punishment.

Personal Insights

The content of this piece was an eye-opener for me since, before doing so, I was

completely unaware of the possible negative effects that physical punishment may have on the

growth and development of children. The meta-analysis results show that parents and

professionals should rethink the use of physical punishment as a form of child discipline. As a

prospective practitioner, I feel it is necessary to inform parents about the negative effects of

spanking and equip them with more successful and less destructive alternatives.
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Conclusion

The article gives a thorough look at the studies that have looked at the link between

physical punishment and bad things happening to kids. The meta-analysis shows that spanking is

linked to negative consequences such as lower IQ, more behavioral issues, and psychological

distress in children. The meta-results analyses have significant ramifications for parents,

professionals, and legislators since they underscore the need for alternate punishments that are

more effective and less detrimental to children. Positive parenting approaches are touted as being

more successful in fostering good child behavior and development. These methods include

positive reinforcement, time-outs, and other non-physical types of punishment. In sum, the essay

stresses the need to rely on scientific data while caring for children and the necessity of putting

the kids' needs first rather than those of the old ways of doing things.
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References

Gershoff, E. T., & Grogan-Kaylor, A. (2016). Spanking and child outcomes: Old controversies

and new meta-analyses. Journal of Family Psychology, 30(4), 453-

469. https://doi.org/10.1037/fam0000191