Negative Effects Of Spanking On Children

One explanation as to why spanking has these side effects is that the child is following the example of the parents hitting them. Another part of the explanation is that when parents spank, children miss out on instances of a conflict being resolved nonviolently and therefore have lower problem-solving skills.

Another problem with spanking is that it undermines the relationship between parent and child. It's part of American mythology that spanking is not a big deal and that kids take it in stride, but that isn't what the research shows. Even among kids who say that parents have the right to spank — and most do — it's still a traumatic experience.

Spanking also violates a child's right to grow up free from being assaulted. Just imagine that someone twice or three times as big as you starts hitting you — that's the way kids describe it. It's fearful. Studies have shown that the more kids get spanked, the higher the child's score on a post-traumatic stress test.
But spanking doesn't eliminate bad behavior any more than other forms of discipline, such as explaining what the child is doing wrong or removing the child from the situation. In one study, 73% of mothers reported that their child repeated the same bad behavior even after being spanked for it.

Not all children will suffer negative consequences of spanking. The harm is in the form of a "dose-response." A small dose, like a rare occasional spank, is not going to make a difference most of the time, but sometimes it will. You don't know how spanking is going to affect your child, so the best thing is to avoid it. Instead, use the alternate medicine that works just as well, which is correction and control that doesn't involve hitting the