On Spanking

I was spanked as a child. I turned out OK.

Or did I?

According to a new Canadian study, spanking may result in long-term developmental damage and may even lower a child's IQ.

Yeeps! Maybe I'd have been a genius is I wasn't spanked!

But seriously, this study examined 20 years of research on this subject and concluded that  physical "punishment makes children more aggressive and antisocial, and can cause cognitive impairment and developmental difficulties."

The authors suggest that "there is no controversy in the research" and that if we found this kinds of results on anything else like "taking vitamin C" we'd stop doing it.

CLICK HERE to read more about the study.

In this light, should spanking be illegal in Canada?

What I'd like to know is: how much corporal punishment are they talking about? Were these studies on kids whose parents hit them at every little misstep? Were they 'beat' or spanked? Was there mental abuse going on at the same time?

I think there can be times when a spanking is appropriate. Would you rather give your child a smack on the hand to stop her from trying to touch the hot stove or let her get burned? Or, maybe, a stern voice is enough? I've seen people parent children with no spanking. A tone of voice change or a look can set a child straight. (If you've seen that happen, it's almost magical!)

I don't have children yet so I'm just going on observation and my experience as a spanked child. I don't think spanking should be the norm but perhaps there are times when it is needed.

What do you think?

Were you damaged by being spanked (as this study suggests)? Are there times when you think spanking is appropriate?

Should spanking be illegal?

Here are some of the calls I received on the subject: