Is spanking child abuse Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Is spanking child abuse - Essay Example The varying points of view relate to the definition of spanking and further, what can be termed as rational force. In this light, spanking involves the physical infliction of pain as a sign of instilling discipline, better known as corporal punishment and it is legal as long as the force used is rational (Mercer 26). The definition of rational would also be important to point out, being the application of such force that will lead to the correction of the wrong behavior that does not lead to injury. The key to this definition, any force used to serve disciplinary action to the child may be termed as irrational when the behavior is not corrected or the circumstances do not show proof of a clear intent of correcting (Quinn 50). Although most people hold different opinions on the subject, spanking has been seen to be ineffective to correction and the infliction of pain may be termed as abuse to the children. Proponents of spanking believe that children who are spanked in their childhood years grow to be better adults. They express high codes of discipline and are less likely to engage in unlawful activity in their later years. This group believes that discipline is a vital issue in the society and every means possible must be used to uphold it (Mercer 31). Further, if a pinch on the arm would teach the child a lesson for a child who fought, another in class, then some teachers contend that the method would best be applied in the school environment. Some people believe that corporal punishment made them change in their earlier years, without which things would not have been the same if other methods had used. This perceived effectiveness of spanking is therefore used to justify this mode of abusive punishment. Conversely, it is imperative to go beyond the mere fact of correcting the child, to the psychological perspective of corporal punishment. Researchers in this line argue that