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Spanking Argumentative Essay

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Position Rough Draft When it comes to disciplining a child, some parents will resort to spanking, or better known in the South as a “whupping”. “The origins of the anti-spanking prohibition have a lot to do with two social phenomena of postwar America: the rise of popular psychology and the breakup of the extended family (4). Those who were spanking as children argue that they “turned out just fine”, and these parents believe that spanking is the most effective form of punishment, while there have been studies conducted that have interesting results that may come as a shock to those parents. Their studies have concluded that spanking could lead to many negative effects throughout the child’s life and on into adulthood. The scholars who …show more content…

Those who are against it go on to say that spanking causes the child and parents bond to be unhealthy. Most studies have found that the relationship between the child and parent decreases and that “children who are spanked have a less trusting and affectionate relationship with their parents and feel less guilt about misbehavior, as opposed to concern about being caught (3). Spanking is known to have only one positive effect, and that is to stop the disliked behavior immediately. Spanking can be defined as a lesson taught out of violence, and violence is defined as “an act carried out with the intention, or perceived intention, of causing physical pain or injury to another person.” ( 6 ). If this is the way spanking is defined, what are we teaching our children? We are teaching them that it is okay to act out of violence when they become frustrated, and that it is okay to hit someone when they are upset with them. Many believe that since spanking is done out of anger, parents who spank are more likely to commit child abuse when disciplining their children. Studies have shown that children who are spanked have a greater tendency to fear their parents and not have a loving child/parent bond. Dr. Aminifu R. Harvey, a professor at the University Of Maryland Baltimore School Of Social Work, stated that, “Studies have shown that children spanked in anger lose respect for the parents and view them as out of control—negating the whole point of discipline, which is to muster self-control” (2). It is also believed that spanking can cause a child to start lying in order to avoid getting caught and being punished. Along with that, some also believe that spanking is leading to children learning to become sneakier in order to not get

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