Physical Punishment Not Shown to Improve Child Behavior
A new report released by Phoenix Children’s Hospital in collaboration with a researcher at the University of Michigan concludes that there is little evidence that physical punishment improves children’s behavior in the long-term. Rather, the report cites substantial evidence that physical punishment puts children at risk for negative outcomes such as increased aggression and mental health problems.
The report, authored by Elizabeth T. Gershoff, PhD, a researcher from the University of Michigan and reviewed and endorsed by Phoenix Children’s Hospital provides a concise review of one hundred years of social science research and hundreds of published studies on physical punishment conducted by psychology, medical, education, social work and sociology professionals on the effects physical punishment has on children. Individuals representing 30 organizations participated in its development and it has already been endorsed by American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Emergency Room Physicians, American Medical Association, National Association of Counsel for Children and National Association of Regulatory Administration.
“The report and its conclusions are a valuable tool for us and substantiates our observations at the Phoenix Children’s Hospital Behavioral Medicine Clinic for the last two decades,” said Dr. Eric Benjamin, Section Chief of Psychiatry at Phoenix Children’s”
The report created for parents and caregivers, policy and program makers and children themselves concludes that:
There is little research evidence that physical punishment improves children’s behavior in the long term.
There is substantial research evidence that physical punishment makes it more, not less, likely that children will be defiant and aggressive in the future.
There is clear research evidence that physical punishment puts children at risk for negative outcomes, including increased antisocial behavior and mental health problems.
There is consistent evidence that children who are physically punished are at greater risk of serious injury and physical abuse.
• “This consensus endorsed by the AAP is a huge step forward for effective discipline in the United States”, said Marcia Stanton, Community Relations, Phoenix Children’s Hospital. “At Phoenix Children’s Hospital, our goal is to help parents deal effectively with challenging behaviors and providing parent education about alternative methods is part of the solution.”
• Research showing the mounting evidence that physical punishment of children is an ineffective parenting practice comes at a time of decreasing support for physical punishment within the United States and around the world. The majority of American adults are opposed to physical punishment by school personnel (77 percent) and an increasing number of Americans (29 percent) are opposed to physical punishment by parents. At the same time, there is a growing momentum among other countries to enact legal bans on all forms of physical punishment, bolstered by the fact that the practice has come to be regarded as a violation of international human rights law.
“Forty years ago, parents put their children in cars without car seats or seatbelts—we survived, but no parent today would think of taking that risk even though our parents did. Just as norms about child car seat safety changed, it’s time for norms about discipline to change,” said Dr. Gershoff.
The full report can be downloaded at www.phoenixchildrens.com/discipline.
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Why is it that nearly every country in the world, except the US, Singapore, and South Korea, have signed the UN Children's Human Rights doctrine? Why is it that the US, Singapore, South Korea, and Malaysia still think that hitting children is such a positive thing? Do you know where the highest teen suicide rates are? IN the states that allow CP, in Singapore, and...especially, where it is the highest in the world, SOUTH KOREA! CP has long since been proven to have a negative affect on children and students. It is TIME for these children to be protected. It is time for parents and educators realize the potential damage CP does to children. It is time for our country to stand up and ban paddling in schools.
According to an important new report on physical punishment of children in the U.S., read the full report at http://www.phoenixchildrens.com/discipline , the majority of American adults are opposed to physical punishment by school personnel. The report has been endorsed by the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Emergency Physicians, the National Association of Regulatory Boards and others. There is a growing momentum among other countries to enact legal bans on all forms of physical punishment, bolstered by the fact that the practice has come to be regarded as a violation of international human rights law. There is little research evidence that physical punishment improves children's behavior in the long term. In contrast, there is substantial research evidence that physical punishment puts children at risk for negative outcomes, including increased aggression, antisocial behavior, mental health problems, and physical injury. The clear connections between physical abuse and physical punishment that have been made in empirical research and in the child abuse statutes of several states suggest that reduction in parents' use of physical punishment should be included as integral parts of state and federal child abuse prevention efforts.
29 Legislatures, over half of the states in the U.S., have abolished Corporal Punishment of Children in Schools. Ohio’s Governor Ted Strickland has proposed a ban on school paddling tied to education funding, if approved, Ohio will be the 30th state to ban this unacceptable practice.
Governors of Paddling School States would be wise to follow Governor Strickland’s fine example that sends a clear message that Corporal Punishment does not have a place in a 21st-century classroom. Wise educators truly know the importance of showing the children they influence how important respect and kindness are. We do not have the right to harm or physically hurt another person. Parents and teachers have an obligation to protect their children from verbal or physical violence. This is fundamental to the development of healthy children.
It is in our great nation’s best interest to ban corporal punishment and support our educators with real tools for achieving academic success. Legislatures must alleviate this problem with uniform policies and procedures by enacting laws mandating nationwide disciplinary codes that create a healthy school environment including:
1. send a clear and consistent message that students must behave responsibly and respectfully;
2. model positive behavior for students;
3. consistently enforce rules and foster self control and respect among students;
4. teach students skills to help them solve conflicts in fair, nonviolent ways.
The policy must also require local school boards to:
1. help teachers and administrators create safe learning environments;
2. value school climate as a critical learning component.
Policies must require boards to review all disciplinary policies to ensure they encourage students to stay in school rather than excluding them from school.
Hitting children produces a very angry person. It is a form of bullying and accomplishes the opposite of what is desired in behavior. It teaches children that hitting is a viable way of resolving problems. It teaches males to hit and teaches females to submit to bigger stronger people.
It baffles understanding that this issue is so rarely considered a serious topic in the public forums of Arkansas, where teachers hit their pupils over thirty thousand times last year. Facilitated by law, physical punishment by school teachers sanctions and reinforces physically punitive behavior by the parents of their students. Among several unintended, negative side effects, an increased risk of child abuse can be linked to the practice. Elimination of this threat would mean no cost to taxpayers or to children.
Parents are role models for children's behavior. When parents cuss, children learn to curse, when parents hit, slap or spank, children learn to hit. Good discipline begins and ends with talking and being a good role model. Hitting children with paddles, belts or extension cords is child abuse. See www.nospankingzone.org
Jimmy Dunne, People Opposed to Paddling Students, 1306 w. Brooklake Dr., Houston, TX 77077 281.584.9707
The report "Physical Punishment In The U.S.: What Research Tells Us About Its Effects on Children" needs to be distributed widely. Dr. Gershoff is right. Parenting practices re: discipline are changing. More and more parents believe that corporal punishment isn't necessary or appropriate. The research report confirms that. The many organizations involved in developing this report are to be commended for this consensus document.