Psychology

Disciplining children is good as it teaches them to know what is good and what is wrong so that they grow up making wise decisions and good choices. When a child makes a wrong decision, verbal warnings go unheeded since children are naturally not good listeners (Paintal, 2002). Therefore some form of punishment is the only way of ensuring that a child does not repeat a mistake. The modes of punishing children include time-out, spanking or corporal punishment, physical exercise and many other ways (Grogan-Kaylor, 2004). The efficiency and social acceptability of all methods of punishing children to instill discipline and moral values varies from case to case and place to another. Corporal punishment is so far the most controversial, even banned in some countries.

Corporal punishment, its justification and effectiveness has been a widely debated topic. Some parents believe that since they were spanked at one time during their childhood and they still grew to be responsible adults, then corporal punishment must be effective. The definition of corporal punishment is the infliction of pain on the body and includes such things like spanking, pinching, lashing, forced labor and even in the extreme case, mutilation (National Commission for the Protection of Child right, 2008). The danger with corporal punishment is that it is progressive. This is because as physical pain is continuously inflicted, the body of a child becomes accustomed to it and the child becomes rigid. Instead of correcting a mistake, the child becomes more deviant.

No matter how mild the use of corporal punishment is at the beginning, it eventually leads to abuse (Schneider, Pike, Larson, Sather, Larzelere, 1998). As the child becomes more aggressive and adamant because of the adverse psychological effects brought about by being physically harmed, the parent, guardian or teacher is prompted to increase the level of punishment and the process escalates into battering (American Academy of Pediatrics, 1998). In addition, it teaches the child that violence is permissible in the society and the child could harm its peers or become a bully. Corporal punishment can lead to the child suffering physical injuries as the parent or teacher becomes more accustomed to using this method of punishment. This is a violation of the rights of a child (Paintal, 2007).

Corporal punishment degrades a child and lowers its self esteem. Even though all forms of punishment lower the standing of an individual, being beaten up especially when it is severe lowers the standing of a child among its peers and causes a sense of unwarranted anxiety (Paintal, 2002). This then serves to damage the relationship between the child and its parents, friends and teachers. This is very dangerous as it contributes to the acquiring of anti-social behavior and deviancy, negatively affecting the learning process and the development of interpersonal capabilities.

As said earlier, physical punishment teaches a child that violence is an acceptable way of dealing with differences between people. Instead of taking the risk and jeopardizing the life of a child in the ways listed above, a parent should adopt methods of punishment that correct the mistakes a child commits while building its character (Schneider, Pike, Larson, Sather, Larzelere, 1998). However, it is important that not to bluff while meting out punishments. A parent should be firm but loving and should make sure that any punishment dished out is carried out promptly otherwise the threats lose any respect and meaning. Children are very playful and may take bluffs as meaning that the parent or teacher is always not serious. It is therefore important to establish credibility so that discipline can be enforced.