Corporal Punishment Analysis Essay Example

parent or caretaker causing harm with the end results being a fatality, major physical or emotional injury, and sexual harm or any act of infliction that would cause severe injuries to the child [ (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2008) ]. If an adult intentionally harms a child by beating, punching, shaking, and so on is considered as child abuse. If for some reason the adult authority figure used corporal punishment on a child not intending to cause harm, but the ending result was severe physical harm on the child would be considered as child abuse.

Physical punishment forms such as paddling or spanking without harming the child is not an illegal act of child abuse. It’s important to know what the signs of child abuse are when adults use method corporal punishment as a form of discipline. Apparent bruises or scars on a child body are a sign the child could possibly be experiencing child abuse. If not sure when to consider corporal punishment as child abuse look for the signs listed to help determine whether to report a possible case of child abuse. Depending on how physical punishment is inflicted on a child it could be viewed as abuse.

It’s a fine line between corporal punishments being considered as child abuse, before utilizing physical punishment as a form of discipline parents should research while the child is misbehaving. Children misbehave for several reasons. It’s our job as parents or caregivers to discover why our children are misbehaving to determine the best possible method of discipline. Some common caused a child misbehavior can be due to the child seeking some attention, inconsistency in

the home, and lack of being education as to what is considered as misbehavior.

When a child is lacking in some important area of their life, their behaviors start to change to grasp their parent’s attention. As parents it’s our job to step in and research to help eliminate misbehavior in our children today. When an adult authority initial reaction to their misbehaving child is corporal punishment this could lead to confusion causing the behavior to continue. Biological, psychological, and environmental factors can all be contributing factors to the misbehaving child [ (What causes a child to misbehave? , 2012) ].

Evaluating these contributing factors can help adequately determine the misbehavior and find ways to properly address the negative behavior. For instance if a child acts out because their parents have failed to provide adequate attention, the parent should provide attention to their child only when the child is showing good behavior [ (What causes a child to misbehave? , 2012) ]. This sets the expectation to the child that misbehavior does not get them the attentions they are seeking. If more parents took the time to investigate children’s behavior it ill help reduce the amount of negative behavior the child displays.

Inconsistency in a child’s environment can also result in misbehavior. Inconsistency is defined as a lack of stability, parental control and unclear child expectations. Parents have to have stability in order to provide a child with stability and have complete control over their child’s behavior. Parents need to ensure the expectations of their children are age appropriate. If a five year old child is given expectations of a ten year

old child then it can lead to wrong doings.

Expecting a child to do something that not age appropriate as parents we are asking for our children to misbehave. Education as to what is considered inappropriate behavior is essential before we can determine any form of disciplinary action. Often time’s children are confused as to what they have done to be punished. Making sure rules are clear and concise will help eliminate the possibility of misbehavior. For example if a child has been rewarded for inappropriate behavior in the past, they are more likely going to continue to practice this unacceptable behavior.

Once the child practices that same behavior and we enforce discipline the child becomes confused and is unclear of what is expected. Think about how children feel when corporal punishment is used for discipline on a misbehavior which has been previously rewarded. Do not cause children to become confused, make sure children understand the rules? Punishing them for inappropriate behavior and then trying to correct it could cause more social and emotional effects on the child. When thinking about corporal punishment and how it can negatively affect the child on the receiving end is important.

It has been proven that corporal punishment may be a quick fix but does not provide a long term solution to misbehavior [ (The effects of corporal punishment, 2001) ]. Infliction of pain used for a long period of time as a discipline form can possible caused more serious behaviors later in their life. More sever behaviors such as acts of violence, aggressive attitude, and become non sociable are just a few of the behaviors

which have been shown in adults who had corporal punishment as a child consistently. These behaviors develop because as adults they believe violence is the right thing to do.

All thought out their childhood this child was inflicted pain due to wrong doings, so they will also feel when someone has done wrong unto them infliction of pain is appropriate. Children have also showed some psychological effects which can result from corporal punishment. Lower self-esteem, alcohol and substance abuse, and depression are just a few of the possible outcomes. Because of these negative affects corporal punishment can have on a child it’s recommended to consider other forms of discipline when a child misbehaves.

Violent behavior has continued to be a part of this child’s life, so how can the child be expected to practice behavior which is acceptable. On the flip side corporal punishment not only has negative outcomes but also has some positive outcomes. Depending on how the punishment is delivered to the child can help produce a more positive outcome. Often times when parents discipline their children for acts of misbehavior the parent is upset because of what the child has done. Adults have to take the time to breathe and calm down and decide whether physical punishment is appropriate.

If physical punishment is the only alternative left the environment that the discipline is enforced in is important. An environment which is comfortable, accepting and reasoning can produce a more positive affect [ (The effects of corporal punishment, 2001) ]. Because of the several negative outcomes followed from childhood to adult hood it’s recommended to research and utilize alternative form

of discipline. Alternative and more effective discipline methods are available. There are several discipline methods that have more of a positive outcome instead of using physical force.

Due to the thin line between corporal punishment and child abuse its better for adults and or caregivers to use other discipline methods. Just a few discipline methods that are known to work help stop a misbehaving child is acknowledging and rewarding their positive behavior, using age appropriate time out and ignoring unacceptable child behaviors. When making the decision to discipline children we are teaching the difference between right and wrong. For children to learn the difference is important to ensure the unacceptable practiced behavior is not continued.

Acknowledging and rewarding children when they are on their best behavior teach the child what good behavior is [ (Effective discipline for children, 2004) ] . This discipline method promoted good healthy behavior. The child is going to want to continue the good behavior due to having something to look forward to. Not always do you have to provides a tangible reward but giving praise such,”good job being on your best behavior”. Children also need to hear words of encouragement from their parents and or caregiver. Encouragement promoted good behavior as ell. Introducing time out to children at an early age is also an effective form of discipline for a child. Time out has been proven to be one of the more effective forms of discipline for parents/caregivers [ (Effective discipline for children, 2004) ]. Time out allows the child time to think about the unacceptable behavior. Thinking about the behavior the child can decide whether or not

they would like to continue with the behavior and time our or discontinue the behavior. Children then understand the consequences of when the rules have been broken.

More often than not the child will decide to display good behavior to prevent from having to sit in time out. When children are disciplined with time out its important to ensure the time spent is based on the age of the child. A child who is five years old cannot be expected to sit in time out for more than five min. To determine how long a child should sit in time out; add one minute for each year old of the child [ (Effective discipline for children, 2004) ]. Children at this age like to move and this would not be attainable for this age range.

Also once the child has been issued time out as the discipline method it’s important to explain why time out was awarded. Once time out is over the child should have a clean slate [ (Effective discipline for children, 2004) ]. As a child growing up my parents used the discipline technique of ignoring inappropriate behavior. My parents would use this method to ensure they are not acknowledging behavior which was not acceptable. I disliked for my parents to ignore me so I would always straighten up my act. This discipline method has been used for years to change a child’s behavior.

Even today I use this discipline technique with my children and it works great. Instead of using physical abuse I feel this method works better. My Children always ask me after a little while, “why

I was ignoring them”? My response is,” because I will not acknowledge unacceptable behavior”. If the unacceptable behavior is acknowledged this provided the child with the positive attention they are seeking [ (Effective discipline for children, 2004) ]. When that attention has been declined the behavior will change immediately. Personally I believe pain can be inflicted on a child without physical force.

There’s nothing more hurtful to a child than to have to stop what they are doing, and being ignored. Because a child feels good to receive attention from adults and to continue having fun these methods of discipline are more effective. Corporal punishment is not a needed form of discipline for children. Corporal punishment can easily lead to a child being abused [ (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2008) ]. Because the line is so thin between the two in order to stay compliant with state and federal laws it’s recommended to find alternative ways of discipline.

Some parents feel corporal punishment is appropriate and necessary to gain control of their child. This is not the case, more than likely the child has been raised in an environment which utilized corporal punishment as a form of discipline. Due to it being a form of discipline in the home they believe this practice is normal [ (Maurel) ]. Just because an individual was raised with a particular discipline method does not always means it’s the correct method. Researching different ways of discipline is good to determine what ways have been proven to be more effective on children.

Based on the research conducted the most commonly used method is time-out, ignoring the behavior

and praising the child for their good behavior. Continuing to promote good behavior is important. Not only promote good behavior but it is also important to remain consistent in the disciplinary plan which has been put into place for the child. Before enforcing discipline on your children ensure they have a clear understanding of the rules. If the child does not understand what the rules are how we can as parents/caregivers discipline them for inappropriate behavior.

Corporal punishment has been a discipline method passed down from past decades. It has been proven to have several negative effects not only on the child but it trails into their adult life. Physical punishment was used in the public school system and was removed due to the inconsistency in discontinuing the unacceptable behavior. I personally believe corporal punishment is too risky and could easily cause an incident to happen which was not intended. Our child protective custody systems all around the world are over filled with children who parents used this method of discipline and it had a horrible outcome.

To ensure all children have a normal life with no possible thoughts of being abused physical infliction of pain should be deceased as a method of discipline for children. Let’s keep our children safe and not raise them to believe pain is the way problems are solved. Corporal punishment again is not an effective or needed way to discipline a child. If you as a parent/ caregiver would not like for the police to strike you ever time you are breaking the law for speeding or whatever the case may be, let’s not use this same

method of discipline on children. It has been proven not a safe nor is it an effective discipline method.