Not to spank

Spanking is one of the most common forms of discipline used by parents. Although the very same parents do not condone hitting people, they believe spanking is a quick and effective technique for correcting unwanted behavior (Ramsburg 1). Ironically, by using violent and hurtful means of discipline, parents are instilling negative values in their children. The moral consequences of spanking children can have lifelong negative effects. For young children, parents are their primary role models. Therefore, when parents spank their children, they send a powerful message that violence is a way to respond to a problem. It is morally wrong to spank a child.

Spanking has been the way of discipline for many years, but in reality it is child abuse. Spanking is also known as corporal punishment. “Corporal punishment is the use of force with the intention of causing a child to experience pain, but not injury, for the purpose of correction or control of the child's behavior.” (Straus 4) To me, spanking is any kind of negative physical contact to a child with the intention to cause pain as a way of discipline. Anything from a pat on the butt to a slap in the face can be considered spanking. Spanking a child is an act of violence which is then child abuse. "Violence is an act carried out with the intention, or perceived intention, of causing physical pain or injury to another person" (Straus 7). When you spank a child you are intentionally causing pain; therefore, using violence to solve your problem.

When a parent spanks a child, whether they are aware of it or not, they are teaching their child violence. They are teaching them that hitting someone else is okay. I know that when I was spanked as a child I knew that I had ...